Big Blue Bagel, Toomers Corner, Tailgates, learning the creed, Aubie, watching Indy fly, its great to be back on the plains.

When I was 9 years old I told my parents I wanted to go to the Olympics and win a Gold Medal. That was my dream, not my parents dream. Not my friends, or my teachers dream. Mine!

Sometimes we care too much about what other people think, we spend too much time asking everyone else what we should be doing, instead of just doing it. I was fortunate in that I knew what I wanted, and I worked my butt off to get it. You might not know exactly what it is you want. That’s okay – just do something. Start! Then work your butt off – the rest will follow.

Out of the 4 university’s that wanted me on their swim team, Auburn were the only ones who made the effort to send a coach all the way to Zimbabwe to recruit me.

Former AD Jay Jacobs, my coaches David Marsh and Kim Brackin, Dean Hubbard Thank you for taking a chance on me. President Roberts and Team, thank you for giving me the honour of being here today.

Despite me being at the top of the other swim teams, I chose Auburn because I would be at the bottom. I knew I needed the best people around me to make me better. Auburn taught me about the power of teamwork, and becoming Auburn’s greatest Olympian was possible because of the strength of the team I surrounded myself with and to this day I still attribute my successes to the those around me.

After winning my first Olympic medals in Athens in 2004 I set my targets higher. At the Beijing Olympics in 2008 I won 1 Gold, 3 Silver and broke 2 Olympic and world records. I was disappointed. I was aiming for 4 Gold and 4 world records. I lost focus on what it meant just to make the Olympic team, to be an Olympian. I got so lost in thinking I had failed that I never took the moment to recognize what I had just accomplished. I regret not being more present.

So, I encourage you all to look around and take this moment in because this has been your Olympics. Not everyone gets to go to university, not everyone graduates. You have finally reached your goal, you have graduated. But…if you haven’t already realized this then you soon will, any goal or target you set does not end with that goal, that goal is simply the foundation of your next goal: your next invention, your next cropping season, your next degree, your next…And the longer you take to Start, the longer you will take to reach your final goal. So, your next move will be to take the risk you’re already thinking about and go for it. Yes, you will be afraid so be afraid. Fear it, but do not let fear stop you. Let the fear of taking that risk excite you because Auburn has given you the foundation you need to lift yourself up when you fail. And you will fail. In fact I encourage you to fail. If you are not making mistakes, you are not trying hard enough. I believe that 90% of experience is borne through failure so don’t let failure, or the fear of failure, stop you. Embrace it, analyze it, adapt, and push through.

In 2012, My husband and I started a children’s swimwear company. Oh boy was it a failure! We spent so much money and time on a great concept and of course because I was a successful swimmer this would naturally translate into me creating a successful swimwear brand. Nope. Life has a great way of humbling you. We just didn’t have a clue what we were doing, but we learned, oh my gosh did we learn. Different fabrics, color codes, designs, making decisions, working with people, minimum order quantities, logistics, taxes, you name it. My point is that if we never started the company, I would be standing up here today, 10 years later, still telling you about an idea I have for a swimwear company. It would be exactly that, just an idea. And you know what, in hindsight it was not a lot of money and the time we spent on that project was amazing and I loved it and it was because of this failure that I have been able to accomplish other great goals.

At the same time, we were setting up the swimwear company, we started a children’s program called Heroes, a non-profit project that used sport to provide a safe environment for underprivileged and underserved children in Zimbabwe. We tested the heck out of our program by developing it through multiple phases in building a community inspired foundation that was created as a passion of mine. The program was run by coaches who lived in disadvantaged areas, twice a week, every week of the year. We had 3000 kids coming through our program on a weekly basis. We were innovative, passionate, and doing better than expected. After the failed swimwear, things were finally making sense, we were finally back on our path, but then had to stop running the foundation, because I was appointed as Minister of Youth, Sport, and Art – a high level position in the Government of Zimbabwe. Not a position I wanted or planned for.

Through all my trials and tribulations, becoming a Politician was the hardest thing I have ever had to do. Not because of the change, change is inevitable, and I embrace change. But, because I’m not a Politician. And now I had to deal with bureaucracy, underfunded budgets, and negative criticism. For so long my identity was the golden athlete, the athlete who had won 7 individual Olympic medals, one of the top female swimmers of all time, everyone loves an “athlete” but not everyone loves a “politician”. Social media and people’s opinions changed overnight as I was always judged on what I did, not who I was. And, I started judging myself on their opinions. Do not let what you do, define who you are. Do not run away from change or challenges simply because life, is not exactly as you want it. Be willing to make the sacrifices, embrace the changes and overcome the obstacles, because your true potential will surprise you in the most unexpected ways.

By getting out of my comfort zone, I have been able to have a far greater impact on a much higher number of people. I manage different departments on a national scale, we design new policies that will protect our athletes, artists and cultural heritage. Hard work and responsibility are not always fun, but the meaning will always outweigh the reward. Today, I am grateful for the huge detour that was thrown in my path, because its shown me my inner strength, something I had be questioning.

This year is an Olympic year, in July, the world’s greatest athletes will meet in Paris. Our athletes are role models, strong individuals who live the Olympic motto Faster, Higher, Stronger, Together. Over 14 days, these athletes, push themselves daily to overcome the impossible in an environment that is high pressure, high stress and where anything could happen, and they live together peacefully to show the world what we could be. Fearless, accepting, and inspirational.

Life is messy, hard, exciting, full of failures and rewards, full of love, and you are about to live it, become the Olympians of your own life and show the world you can take on any challenge because you believe in hard work, you are wise, you are honest, you are constantly developing a sound mind, body and spirit, you believe in the rights of everyone, you are human and above all, you believe in your country and your freedom.

Congratulations to you all,

WAR EAGLE!