Yesterday, I got to spend time visiting history. I did not take a long drive or pay to go out of town to visit a monument. I went across town to Tennessee State University. I was meeting with Coach Cheesebourgh two time Olympic Gold Medalist.
As I walked into Gentry Center, as I have done a thousand times before, I noticed the number of large photos dedicated to the thousands of talented athletes that have been educated and trained on the campus. The long walk down the corridor to Coach's office upstairs was awe inspiring. It took me forever to get up the steps because I lingered over ever piece of information that each photo provided. Having a son training in the same facility that the great athletes of days gone by trained in gave me even more reason to be in awe. I was meeting with Coach Cheeseborough to finalize her speaking engagement. The woman who I have read about in countless news articles, magazines, and history books was sharing with me pieces of her life. I was honored and extremely proud of her.
Coach Cheesseborough is by far one of the most celebrated women in sports. Chandra Cheeseborough-Guice broke into the track and field record books at the tender age of 16. She won the national indoor 200-yard dash in 1979, 1981, 1982 and 1983. She made history at the 1984 Games when she became the first woman to win gold medals in both relays, held less than an hour apart. Cheeseborough later became a coach and returned to Tennessee State. She was named head coach of both men and women in 1999. She also has served as an assistant coach for the U.S. team at the 1999 Junior Pan-Am Championships. Coach Cheeseborough was also coach for the 2008 Olympic Track and Field Team.
Coach Cheeseborough will speak at Woodmont Hills, 3710 Franklin Road, Nashville, Tennessee on Wednesday, February 25 at 6:30. Join us if you will. We will have several items from Coach Cheeseborough's personal collection on display.
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