LSU's Lolo Jones flies over a hurdle.
Jones, who was crowned the U.S. Olympic Trials champion on the same track at the University of Oregon four years ago, raced to the finish line in 12.86 seconds in Saturday's championship final to earn her place on Team USA as an Olympian for the second time in her illustrious career.
Jones followed 2008 Olympic gold medalist Dawn Harper (12.73) and Kellie Wells (12.77) in the final as spots on Team USA were awarded to the three medalists in the race.
She actually matched her seasonal best in the semifinal round with a run of 12.75 to claim second place in the second heat. And after clocking 12.86 in a final that was run into a headwind of 1.2 meters per second, Jones earned a return trip to the Olympics after advancing to the hurdle final in her debut in Beijing in 2008. She was the world's No. 1-ranked hurdler in 2008 when she set her PR of 12.43.
The women's 100-meter hurdles will be held over two days at the 2012 Olympic Games in London as the first round will be held on Aug. 6 followed by the semifinal and final rounds on Aug. 7.
"I'm proud that I fought so hard," Jones said in a press conference after her race. "There were times when I just wanted to give up this season. I had the surgery, and then I had two hamstring tears, both requiring a lot of treatment. There were a lot of times where I didn't think I would be ready in time. I really wanted to quit. I just can't believe we got it done in time. I'm just shocked right now.
"I was just trying to overcome those doubts and fears for what I could do and execute technically. It really was quite a battle. It's great to now have a month to prepare for the Olympics."
Jones has battled through an injury-plagued season in 2012 while only running in five meets before lining up at the U.S. Olympic Trials this weekend. With her performance on Saturday afternoon, she will extend her season into the summer as she prepares to represent the United States at the Olympic Games once again.
"I've been fighting this whole season. I've not been running well, a lot of 12.9s and a lot of 13.0s, a lot of losing and just filled with doubt and fear this whole season," Jones said. "I woke up today and didn't even think I would make the team. I was fighting a constant head battle just trying to have confidence and fight through this. I'm just thrilled that I was able to overcome and make this team."
Lady Tiger sophomore Jasmin Stowers joined Jones in the semifinal round of the 100 hurdles and clocked 13.21 (+1.2) for seventh place in the first of three heats. Stowers finished in 18th place overall in her debut at the U.S. Olympic Trials to wrap up an All-America sophomore campaign in 2012.
After taking to the track for her scheduled 5:15 p.m. CT start time in the first heat, Stowers and the rest of her competitors were called off the track during introductions as heavy rains caused a 20-minute delay for the official start of Saturday's semifinals on the track at Hayward Field.
Senior teammate Rebecca Alexander followed with a seventh-place finish in her semifinal heat of the 400 meters as she crossed the finish line in 52.69 while running out of Lane 8.
Alexander, who raced to a PR of 51.20 in a silver-medal winning effort at the NCAA Championships two weeks ago, qualified for the 400-meter semifinal in her first U.S. Olympic Trials appearance after running 52.30 in the opening round on Friday afternoon. She is the No. 4-ranked 400-meter runner in LSU history with her PR of 51.20, while she also owns the No. 2-ranked 4x400-meter relay split all-time at the NCAA Championships with her 49.5-second run on the second leg for the Lady Tigers in the national final.
Future Lady Tiger Keri Emanuel also saw action on a stormy Saturday afternoon at Hayward Field as she stepped onto the triple jump runway for her first experience at the U.S. Olympic Trials.
While needing to finish among the top 12 in Saturday's qualifying to earn her spot in Monday's finals, the sophomore from South Plains College jumped a best of 42 feet, 0 inches on her third attempt in the prelim en route to a 15th-place finish in the competition. Emanuel owns a wind-legal personal record for the triple jump at 43-10 that she set at the Texas Relays earlier this season.
Emanuel signed her National Letter of Intent with the Lady Tigers in February as the No. 1 jump prospect in the junior college ranks for the Class of 2012. She wrapped up her two-year tenure at South Plains with a sweep of junior college national championships in both the long jump and triple jump in 2012.
With Saturday's action now in the books, the LSU Track & Field contingent will look ahead to the second weekend of competition at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials that is set to begin on Thursday at historic Hayward Field on the campus of the University of Oregon.
Time Schedule for LSU Entries at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials
Note: Times are Central and subject to change based on round-by-round qualifying. All television broadcasts are LIVE.
Thursday, June 28
TV Coverage: NBC Sports Network (8-10 p.m. CT)
6:30 p.m. - Men's Triple Jump Qualifying (Walter Davis, Zedric Thomas)
7:30 p.m. - Women's 400 Hurdles First Round (Cassandra Tate)
8:45 p.m. - Women's 200 Meters First Round (Kimberlyn Duncan)
Friday, June 29
TV Coverage: NBC Sports Network (5-7 p.m. CT)
5:00 p.m. - Women's 200 Meters Semifinals (Kimberlyn Duncan)
5:20 p.m. - Women's 400 Hurdles Semifinals (Cassandra Tate)
6:05 p.m. - Men's 110 Hurdles First Round (Ryan Fontenot, Barrett Nugent)
Saturday, June 30
TV Coverage: NBC (8-9 p.m. CT)
6:20 p.m. - Men's 110 Hurdles Semifinals (Ryan Fontenot, Barrett Nugent)
6:40 p.m. - Men's Triple Jump Final (Walter Davis, Zedric Thomas)
8:40 p.m. - Men's 110 Hurdles Final (Ryan Fontenot, Barrett Nugent)
8:50 p.m. - Women's 200 Meters Final (Kimberlyn Duncan)
Sunday, July 1
TV Coverage: NBC (6-7 p.m. CT)
6:02 p.m. - Women's 400 Hurdles Final (Cassandra Tate)
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