Junior Tiffany Dinh has high expectations for herself and her team as they continue on through the 2012 season. The distance star has already been added to the All-American list in the 2011 cross country season and she looks to add another for track and field. Sports Information Intern Miguel A. Canto Jr. was lucky enough to catch speedy Dinh to talk about life as a student-athlete, personal goals and life after Cal Poly Pomona.

Q: In your opinion, what does it mean to be a student athlete?

Dinh: A student-athlete is someone who strives to succeed both in the classroom and in their sport. GPA or athletic accolades do not matter, as long as the individual is putting in honest effort into both athletics and academics, then the individual is a student-athlete.

Q: Over the past few years you have maintained above a 3.4 grade point average, where do you find the time to get your studies done while having practices for cross country in one season and track in the other?

Dinh: With the exception of a short break in between seasons, running is year round, so running has become a daily routine for me. However, I have been fortunate enough to work out my class schedules that give me the right amount of practice hours, study hours and in-class hours.

Q: Aside from athletics and academics, what do you do with your spare time?

Dinh: In my spare time, I like being outdoors and hanging out mainly with my family because I do not see them as much during the school year. I hang out with my friends and try new things like going to the beach, snowboarding and going out to new restaurants. I also like surfing the web and finding random facts and telling people about them too. 

Q: What is your favorite spot on campus? In your hometown? In general?

Dinh: My favorite spot on campus is the BSC because it's always cool inside and there is food everywhere. I live in Norwalk and there really isn't anything fun about Norwalk. So in general, I like going to the Eastland Center because there's a Dick's Sporting Goods, Target (I love Target), and a lot of restaurants around there.

Q: Having already accomplished so much within cross country and track & field, what is next as you approach your senior year?

Dinh: Coming in to my senior year, I have high expectations for myself and my team. I plan on going to nationals with my team and placing in the top 10 as an individual and as a team. For my last year of track, I plan on hitting automatic qualifying times and becoming an All-American.

Q: What is it that you are looking forward to accomplish within either program by the time you graduate? 

Dinh: I am looking forward to breaking records in the Cal Poly Pomona all-time leaderboard, helping the team grow, and take a conference team title.

Q: What would you like to do once you graduate?

Dinh: I have a few routes I can choose from. My first option would be to go right into grad school or my second option would be to work an entry level position in human resources for two years and then apply to an MBA program.

Q: Who has been your mentor throughout your years at Cal Poly Pomona?

Dinh: Both Coach Troy Johnson and Coach Tony Reyes have been my mentors here at Cal Poly Pomona. Coach Troy has taught me a lot of life lessons, helped me find confidence in myself, and coached me to continue to raise the bar from one goal to another. Coach Tony has coached me to become the athlete I am today and is someone I can always confide in.

Q: What is one quote that you live by?

Dinh: "You don't get a choice how you're going to die or when. You can only decide how you're going to live now." - Joan Baez

Q: If you could go to lunch with any pro athlete, who would it be and where?

Dinh: Shaun White. I would want to have lunch up at his private mountain where he trains for the Olympics.

Q: A hypothetical question. If you were on the marketing team for Bronco Athletics and you had no limit on a budget, what would be your choice of a marketing project?

Dinh: A cool marketing project given no budget constraints would be having pro athletes of all sports hang out at games and competitions with the Bronco fans and show their support for Bronco Athletics. 

Previous Q&As | Jenzen Torres (Baseball) 4.12.12 | Jacob Deavers (Track & Field) - 4.4.12 |