{"id":1422,"date":"2012-10-19T20:20:05","date_gmt":"2012-10-19T20:20:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/?p=1422"},"modified":"2012-10-19T20:20:05","modified_gmt":"2012-10-19T20:20:05","slug":"olympians-visit-blackburn-middle-school-online-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/2012\/10\/19\/olympians-visit-blackburn-middle-school-online-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Olympians visit Blackburn Middle School: Online story"},"content":{"rendered":"

Diamond Jenkins
\nBlue & White Flash \/ Associate editor <\/strong><\/p>\n

Blackburn Middle School 6th, 7thand 8h graders cheered for gold medalist Bianca Knight and silver Medalist Michael Tinsley as they entered the gym on Thursday, Oct.18. Students and faculty members at the school, which neighbors Jackson State University, were given the opportunity to meet the 2012 London Olympians. Tinsley and Knight visited the school to speak to the students on why education is important.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to express to you the importance of education. At this young age, start now. Don\u2019t postpone your education and don\u2019t take advantage what your teacher tells you,\u201d Knight advised to the middle school students, \u201cAlways study and do your best on every test because ultimately you\u2019re going to have only four years to prepare for the rest of your life.\u201d
\n<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

American track and field<\/a> athlete, Knight, showed the students her gold medal from running the 4×100 meters as an American relay team member.<\/p>\n

Knight, an alumnus of Ridgeland High School in Jackson and University of Texas<\/a> freshman, won the female Gatorade Athlete of the Year in track & field in 2006. Turning professional following her freshman indoor campaign, she finished 5th at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials<\/a> in the 200 meters.<\/p>\n

\u201cAthletics don\u2019t last forever, you have to apply yourself to your education because your grades pave the way,\u201d she said.
\n<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

Even though it is four years away, Knight also plans to participate in the 2016 Olympics saying,<\/p>\n

\u201cI am looking to be in Rio and come back with three medals to go along with the one I have now.\u201d
\n<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

Tinsley won his first heat in the 400-meter hurdles at the Olympicsin 49.13 seconds. He then won his semifinal in a season best time of 48.13 seconds.On Aug. 6, Tinsley won silver at the 2012 London Olympics in the 400 meters hurdles, in a new personal best time of 47.91.<\/p>\n


\n<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cIt took a lot of work to get to where I am today, you just have to be your own person,\u201d he advised the students. \u201cSports may not be in your interest or the best thing for you, but you have to work hard. My biggest memory in the Olympics is actually crossing that line and realizing what I had accomplished.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tinsley light-heartedly added the importance of maintaining your nutrition and eating school luch.
\n\u201cIt is very important to eat your school lunch because food gives you energy for class; it is very important to eat your three meals a day.
\n<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

Blackburn Principal, Marietta Carter said that she was honored to have had the Olympians visit her school.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has been truly an honor for the students to get to hear Michael and Bianca speak today. I feel that my students will be inspired to do their best and know that their goals are not unreachable. I thank them for coming and we have really enjoyed them today.\u201d
\n<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

When asked about his future goals Tinsley said, \u201cI am always able to stay humble because my faith,\u201d Tinsley said, \u201cMy faith in god just helped me choose the right path. Never give up and always go after your dream. Listen to your parents because it pays off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tinslley stated that he also plans to go to Brazil for the Olympic Games in 2016.
\n<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

Tinsley will be one of the grand marshals tomorrow in the JSU Homecoming Parade, which starts at 9 a.m. Oct. 20.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Diamond Jenkins Blue & White Flash \/ Associate editor Blackburn Middle School 6th, 7thand 8h graders cheered for gold medalist Bianca Knight and silver Medalist Michael Tinsley as they entered the gym on Thursday, Oct.18. Students and faculty members at the school, which neighbors Jackson State University, were given the opportunity to meet the 2012 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1422","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-campus-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1422","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1422"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1422\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/theflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}