TOYIN AUGUSTUS SPEAKS ON BERLIN BAN



Toyin Augustus, a Nigerian 100m hurdler, won gold at the 2006 African Championships and the 2007 All Africa Games speaks about her ban in 2009 World Championships (Berlin).
"God was and is still my strength and my shield. He knows the truth and I leave my life in His hands. It was very difficult for me to cope with the accusations, distrust, and overall stigma which came with the ban. I fought it and did all I could do to get justice and clear my name with the little support I got but that door of my life is closed so I had to look towards the doors that had opened and I pursued my teaching and coaching career, which brought me full circle back to competing for Nigeria. I never lost my love for the hurdles. I gained love for my work, my students and the love of my life, my four-year-old daughter, Ayooluwa.
Unfortunately, the federation was not supportive at all. There was not an ally in sight and no one even wanted to listen to me. There was no one in place to even speak or work on the athlete’s behalf. My only help was from my friend EnefiokUdo-Obong, who tried to help me and told me how I could proceed after the ban"
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