We know all of Spain Park High School in Birmingham, Alabama, will be cheering on Coach Thompson.
One day I just didnt feel like running.
and he was like thats a javelin.
Credit:Christian Petersen / Staff/Getty Images
So I gave it a try and kinda fell in love with it.
For this shift, he was rewarded with a scholarship to college.
That is what brought Thompson from his home state of New Jersey to the South.
Credit:Curtis Thompson
He accepted the scholarship offer from Mississippi State and headed down toStarkville.
Ultimately he decided he did want to continue throwing javelin.
What it didnt provide was a paycheck.
Credit:Curtis Thompson
He transitioned out of that job when he started substitute teaching at Spain Park High School.
Eventually he joined the track and field coaching team.
They knew that I was still training.
They knew I was trying out for Olympic Games.
The two-time Olympian went on to say that this stuck with him.
He was more than ready to step in and provide consistent guidance for these students.
So for me its just a matter of giving these athletes as much time as I can.
Normally it will be from about 3-4:30 p.m. every day.
It gets a little tricky when the season comes around because their season is my season as well.
But the dedicated coach makes it work.
Theyll be times where I can coach them all week but when it came time for a meet.
Id have to leave and go to my meet and they would go to theirs.
And I knew they were ready and prepared to compete as best they could.
So the kids, theyre awesome.
They 100% understood what I had going on.
Id like to think they think it was cool, he said with a laugh.
Curtis Thompson
It may be a common misconception that Olympic athletes are all rich and famous.
Many work two to three jobs to make ends meet.
Being Coach Thompson ensures the future of his sport.
Its definitely exciting to be able to help out in that way.
Ive gotten to experience and see the different levels of interest in this sport from the youth.
Or just give them something that they can enjoy to be around friends and good people.
Thats been pretty exciting to see.
Make no mistake though, Thompson gets as much out of coaching as he gives.
I just learned for the biggest part, is that they have fun pretty much all the time.
