Postcard From Abroad: Student Olympian Shares Memories From Paris

University of Virginia School of Law student Ashley Anumba ’25 has a unique role to add to her resume after this summer: Olympian. Anumba competed in the discus for Nigeria at the Paris Olympics after taking a year off from law school to train. At UVA in her final year of collegiate eligibility, she finished second in discus at the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Championships, with a throw of 61.31 meters. She broke discus records at UVA and also competed as an undergraduate at the University of Pennsylvania. Now back in classes at the Law School, she is sharing her Olympic experience in the occasional series, “Postcard from Abroad,” featuring reports from students on international experiences and study abroad.

A journey spanning 10 years finally came to fruition for me this summer. This particular season had been a tiring one, involving competitions in different countries almost every week. After six months of vying for a ranking within the top 32 in the world, I accomplished what I had set out to do — I qualified to compete at the Olympics.

Being in Paris for the Olympics was the experience of a lifetime. I arrived with the Nigerian track and field team the day before the opening ceremony and from the moment I stepped into the Olympic Village, I felt invigorated. It was real — I actually did it! Seeing a whole slew of people donning the name of their country on their clothes, hearing chatter in different languages and standing in line with superstar athletes while we get food, was simply absurd.

Despite the rain, the opening ceremony was one of my favorite moments. Drifting along the Seine with some of my best friends will always remain close to my heart. It’s not every day that we get the opportunity to dress up in traditional garb in our nation’s colors alongside the rest of the world. Seeing national monuments, architectural masterpieces, boats full of people and crowds yelling out the names of countries was nothing I could have imagined myself. I walked away from the ceremony thinking that my life could not get any better. My only complaint was that I did not get to see Celine Dion perform!

As with anything, too much of a good thing can be a problem. The fast-paced nature of the Olympics eventually began to wear on me. Being approached by journalists requesting interviews or people asking for pictures every time we exited the village was a taxing experience. I have a new level of respect for celebrities. It’s not easy sharing your limited time with hundreds of other people.

When the day of competition came, I was ready to go. Walking into a packed stadium of 80,000-plus people gave me goosebumps. I felt the roar of the crowd invigorate my blood to the point that I wanted to cry. It was as if I had unlocked a new emotion in that moment. A feeling akin to awe and gratitude enveloped me.

While walking to the competition circle, I took a second to take the view in while also looking for my family. I managed to see my mom and began jumping for joy. All I could think was that I had truly made it. Many sacrifices led me to this moment on the world’s biggest stage.

I imagine most people would be nervous, but I wasn’t. I felt prepared to execute what I had been working on. Ultimately though, I delivered average throws. At the Olympics, average, unfortunately, does not win medals or make you a finalist. Regardless, I managed a performance that I could be proud of, even though I know I’m capable of doing more.

Seeing my whole family, my high school coach and his family, my cousins and friends from different parts of the world come to support me was my favorite part. It’s one thing to have support along the way, but it is another seeing the people that have been along for the journey congregate in one spot to see me compete. Not to mention getting to experience the Olympics alongside my cousin, Amy Okonkwo, who is a part of the Nigerian women’s basketball team.

Now that I was free to do whatever I wanted after my event, one of my missions was to see as many sports as possible. Every day after my competition, I was out seeing others compete in basketball, table tennis, weightlifting and diving. Seeing the best of the best do their thing is a special sight. Despite not knowing the rules of most sports beyond track and field, basketball and soccer, I was able to relate to all these athletes giving all they had within a singular moment of time — whether that was two minutes or two hours.

The closing ceremony, marking the end of the games, was bittersweet. After 18 days, I was ready to go back to a “real” bed, but I knew I was going to miss my new friends from Tajikistan, Croatia and other places, along with my Nigerian teammates. Being treated like a superstar and having every (reasonable) request granted is something I missed as reality sunk in back at home. Nonetheless, this experience will never fade from my memory.

I am blessed and convinced that these moments in life, whether it is competing in the Olympics or obtaining a Juris Doctorate (maybe even both), are what inspire a feeling of confidence, passion and determination for more — more for ourselves, our communities and the world. My only hope is that everyone can experience these sentiments like I have and inspire others to strive for more. No goal is out of our reach if we dare to try.