(NBC Olympics) — Tori Bowie is one of the fastest people in the United States, but it is the slow pace of her hometown, coupled with the wisdom of her grandmother, that turned her into the Olympian she is today.
"Sand Hill doesn't have any stoplights…not even one," says 2015 World 100m bronze medalist Tori Bowie. "I mean, that's all I've known my entire life, so...I'm a small country town girl, even at heart."
She says she comes back to Mississippi because her family is here. "I don't think that I would ever find the type of support that I have here," Bowie says. "This is where I found my strength."
Bowie says her grandmother, Bobbi, has been the role model in her life.
"My birth mom dropped my sister and I off at a foster home when we were 2," Bowie says. "[My grandmother] ended up fighting for us, got custody of us, and we didn't have much, but something that she did gave us was our character."
"I encouraged them to go to school, don't think about boys, at a young age," Bobbie Bowie says. "And to do good, you know. And they took my advice."
Bowie says she just wants people to know that we're just able to do whatever we set our minds too.
"One day, I hope that I can come to Sand Hill, and there's this huge sign that says, 'WELCOME TO SAND HILL, HOME OF TORI BOWIE.'"
The opening ceremony for the Rio Olympic Games can be seen Aug. 5 on NBC.