EUGENE, Ore. — Lolo Jones finished last in heat four of the women’s 100-meter hurdles Friday night at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials at Hayward Field and no, you didn’t take a time machine back to 2008.
Despite her last-place finish, Jones advanced to Saturday’s semifinals along with reigning Olympic silver medalist Keni Harrison, who finished first in her heat in a season-best 12.49. Due to the high number of scratches in the women’s 100 meter hurdles, all competitors in the heats advanced.
“If I wake up tomorrow and don’t need my cane, we will!” said Jones, who last competed in the Olympic track and field trials in 2012 and ran in the Drake Relays in April.
Receive Olympics updates in your texts! Join the USA TODAY Sports WhatsApp channel
At 41, Jones is now old enough to compete in masters track and field competitions. She once held the world’s fastest time in the 100-meter hurdles and was a favorite to win gold at the 2008 Beijing Games before she fell behind at the penultimate hurdle and finished seventh. Desperate to win an Olympic medal, she later took up bobsleigh and competed in the two-woman bobsleigh at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
Before Friday, Jones hadn’t completed consecutive hurdles in six to seven weeks because of a nagging hamstring injury. She completed one hurdle on Thursday morning and “I was crying from the pain.”
Of all those who ran in the women’s 100-meter hurdles, Jones easily received the biggest ovation from the Hayward Field crowd.
“I’m so grateful,” Jones said. “It’s been so long I thought they had forgotten about me.”
Asked how she overcame 10 barriers on Friday – was it pure will? adrenaline? — Jones didn’t miss a beat.
“Toradol,” she said awkwardly before laughing. “The official sponsors of 40 year olds!”
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs will also be essential for the rest of the weekend.
Jones said she was “pushed out” of bobsledding because of her age — she wouldn’t say whether it was by coaches or the federation, saying it’s a “mix” of who calls the shots — but knew from her race times that she could still compete in the hurdles. Her goal this season was to become the first woman in the 100-meter hurdles in her 40s to qualify for the trials. Her goal this morning, given her fear of “blowing my hamstring,” was to make it through the race.
“Sometimes your world ends in your 20s if you don’t make the (Olympic) team,” she said. “I hope to show everyone that you can still be in your 40s and be good enough. And hopefully someone after me will be good enough to fall in their 40s. The science of sports is getting better, I hope these kids can see me and know that there’s longevity in it.”
Harrison finished with the fourth fastest qualifying time. Masai Russell recorded the best time of the day (12.35), followed by Alaysha Johnson (12.37), Tonea Marshall (12.41) and Harrison.
“The competition is tougher than ever, but somehow in the back of my mind I believe I have what it takes and can still be at the top,” Harrison said. “My first races (in 2012) I was scared, crying back there. To come here and feel ready and confident, that’s maturity.”
Nia Ali, the 2016 Olympic silver medalist and 2019 world champion, finished last in the third heat, telling NBC she made a last-minute decision not to push the envelope as everyone would advance automatically.
“My warm-up didn’t go as planned,” said Ali, who had the sixth-fastest time in the world before the tests. “I knew everyone survived. … I did what I had to do.”
The final is scheduled for Sunday, at 8pm (5pm local time).
Jones knows that 14 seconds doesn’t exactly make a difference in the world of track and field. But she believes, deep down, that she can shock the world this weekend and make Team USA.
“If you have a clue,” Jones said, “anything can happen.”
Email Lindsay Schnell at lschnell@usatoday.com and follow her on social media @Lindsay_Schnell
