Orlando Sentinel

Olympic genes and hard work

The story of how rookie Igbinoghen­e came to be a Dolphins’ 1st-round pick

-

His dad did 2,000 sit-ups and trained three times a day chasing his track dream around the world. His mom ran her lungs out chasing hers and made national history.

So when their oldest son was 10, his parents delivered a message.

“We’re not paying for college for you,” they told Noah Igbinoghen­e, the Miami Dolphins’ first-round draft pick.

They gave something more valuable, if used properly.

“He got our genes,” his father, Festus, said. “And he got our work ethic.”

Just for the moment, let’s not talk about who a rookie can be or how he fits this franchise’s future. Let’s talk about how he got here. Because if you see how Igbinoghen­e arrived to the Dolphins, you can see where he might go.

The genes he inherited helped his parents to internatio­nal track stardom in their native Nigeria. Faith won a bronze medal at the 1992 Olympics in a sprint relay — the first Olympic medals in Nigerian history. Festus, who also competed in the Olympics, won a bronze in the long jump at the 1990 Commonweal­th Games.

As for the work ethic:

 ??  ??

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States