LoloWiki

One of the sport’s brightest stars knows that she is needed now more than ever.

The new Oakley ads featuring Lolo Jones hit the stands this spring. The photos of Lolo are crisp black and white, taken as a part of the Oakley ad campaign. In the shots, Lolo stares intently back at the camera, eyes aglow, hot light bouncing off her outfit.

The picture looks like a sports goddess figure, a female superhero. All kidding aside, as far as pro track goes – and the current pro sports world in general right now – Lolo Jones as sports’ guardian angel might not really be all that far off.

Think about what has gone down in pro track circles in the last twelve months: the Mario Jones drug admission, Tim Montgomery, the Trevor Graham Trial, the Dwain Chambers debacle.

While the world’s greatest sport will always win out in the end, these blights have been made worse by the frenzied media. None of the aforementioned events will ever stop any hardcore track & field fan from watching, loving, and following the sport. However, the media has and will continue to seize upon the sport’s issues, looking to pounce on headlines and blowout stories about arrogant, spoiled, drug using athletes. The antidote? Lolo Jones.

Lolo will tell you straight up that she is a reminder that if people believe in something and in themselves that they can do anything. Look at her. She hit a hurdle in 2004 and in the process failed to make the Olympic Team. But Lolo got back up and has since landed two fab sponsors in Asics and Oakley. The 5 foot, 9 inch regular girl from Des Moines, Iowa made it. And she’s had the opportunity to live out some of her wildest dreams.

Lolo hardly needs us to act as her public relations mouthpiece, but nonetheless, it’s hard to deny her All-American, mom-and-apple pie package. She’s easy to champion. In putting together this interview, she was exceedingly pleasant and cooperative. Even so much as following up to make sure that everything was done in order to hit my deadline.

On top of everything, Lolo can run. She is the reigning World Indoor Champion and currently lays claim to 12.57, the fifth fastest time in the world this season. This time puts her in the discussion of the world’s top hurdler.

We caught up with Lolo to talk about her place in the sports world, the Olympic Trials, and one of the most difficult times in her life….

PRJ: Win or lose, what’s the best race you’ve run so far?

LJ: The best race this yearwould have to be when I ran 7.77 indoors. That’s when people began to associate my name with the all-time great Gail Devers. So far outdoors, I've hit my personal best three times now! So I can’t really say a race outdoors. Hopefully the Olympics!

PRJ: Do you think you’ve run as well as you are capable of?

LJ: No. What athlete does though? The moment I think that is the moment, I will cease progress. I honestly can see 12.4, but the moment I hit that, I know I will say to myself I can hit 12.3 and etc.

PRJ: Is there any other hurdler that you’ve been particularly impressed with this season?

LJ: World indoor record holder Susanna Kauller. Her technique is very impressive and she has just good clean hurdling.

PRJ: Grading your own racing from A to F, what would you give yourself and why?

LJ: I would give myself a C plus to B minus. I say this because sometimes my lead leg kicks out to the side and my arm will get long on occasion.

PRJ: I’ve heard you bring up the rough times in ’04 and ’05. How do you think it has affected you and the way you look at track and field?

LJ: Well coming out of college, I wasn’t like the Jermey Warniers or Sanya Richards who signed a six figure contract. After I didn’t make the team in '04, I was broke and essentially without a job. I had my fresh degree in Economics and Spanish, but I knew if I would’ve gone out and got a 9 to 5, that would have been the end of track. So instead, I choose to work two flexible part-time jobs and train. It was hard. I had to live off of credit cards and sometimes it was embarrassing. Now I look back and I am just humble and thankful for those times. I can ride in my car to practice and not have to worry about how I am going to get to practice. I can help provide for my family and others and not worry about if someone can help me. The biggest thing is I see is a lot of the rookies coming out of college every year. Some of them look just like I did four years ago. Confused. Not knowing if they should pursue their dreams or get a job. I just can relate and tell them about my own past experiences.

PRJ: A lot of success has come to you after weathering some storms in the sport?

LJ: A lot of the times I complained and was very depressed while weathering the storms in the sport. But what I have learned is that the storm is what helps give you victory. I would compare it to lifting weights. When you lift weights it is hard and heavy. The weights break your body down, but in the end they make you strong. So storms seem to break you down when you are in them, but they make you strong when you come out.

PRJ: Who is your biggest competition going into the Olympic Trials and what can we expect to see from you performance wise in Eugene?

LJ: Well, normally this is an easy question. This year is quite different as World Outdoor champ Michelle Perry and U.S. Outdoor champ Ginnie Powell have both been hurt and not competing. So, I have no clue where they are in their training. So I would just say that I am my biggest competitor. As that is the case for most athletes anyways. Getting not only over the physical hurdles but the mental ones as well.

PRJ: Right now the sport world is going through a series of negative story lines—NBA ref Tim Donaghy, Marion Jones, Michael Vick, the Trevor Graham trial, and track and field is dealing with some of its own issues. You seem to be the natural antithesis of those things.

LJ: It’s crazy. I really never thought their decision to cheat would effect me, until one day I introduced myself to someone at a track meet. The person looked at me weird for awhile and fnally said, "your not that one that cheated are you?" I got associated with a drug cheat, because I have of one of the worlds most common last names in Jones.

Also, it’s an Olympic year and track is always in the prime time viewing. I just found out that the prime time Olympic sports will be Swimming and Gymnastics, not Track. Those are just little things, but the reality is that there are athletes sitting at home who got second to Marion or other drugs cheats. It's frustrating and heart breaking to know that they will never receive that moment in their life . No one wants to receive their medal via fedex.

PRJ: After missing the ’04 Olympic squad, what would making the ’08 Olympic Team mean to you and your family? You danced in Boston after winning the Visa Indoor Championship series title.

LJ: It's universal. Even a person who has never competed in athletics before, can understand what a great honor it is to have a chance to represent your country and fellow Americans. So it would just be a huge honor to represent my country. A huge honor.

Thank you for making this interview happen and we wish you the best at the Olympic Trials and with the rest of your season.

By Jay Hicks.

Source: Prerace Jitters

World Indoor champion Lolo Jones has finally returned home from her early season European tour and not only is she getting ready for the US Olympic Trials, she can finally feel nice and clean!

“Hi again,

“After three weeks on the European circuit I’m putting my finishing touches to my preparations for the US Olympic Trials back home here in Baton Rouge.

“It is always great to be back home again and one of the big advantages is I can have two one-hour massages a week to ease the stress on my tired and aching limbs.

“When I’m in Europe I often have to rely on what the meet organiser provides, which is often only 30 minutes.

“Overall, I was pleased with my five outings on the European tour (Lolo won three and placed second and third in the other two) because it showed I’m a versatile runner.

“If I have a bad start, or a stumble it doesn’t matter because I’m still going to have a good race.

“It showed me that if I put together all the elements I’ll enjoy my perfect season. I had a little hip pain for my last race in Ostrava but I was pleased I could still run in the 12.60s.

“Berlin was good because it is the earliest point in the season that I’ve run that fast (12.57) and even though I had some technical issues in Oslo I still ran well.

“When I last wrote my diary I mentioned I lost my luggage, but although I had no such problems this time I did face another difficulty – I had no access to a washer and dryer around Europe for so long I started to stink!

“I travelled to Europe for three weeks but I can’t pack for three weeks because I’ll get charged for extra baggage. You pack clothes which will last a week and you end up washing them in the hotel sink.

“You can use the hotel washer but it is really expensive, so by the end of the trip all you want to go home to use your washer and dryer again.

“Besides enjoying wearing clean clothes the reality has dawned on me that the US Olympic Trials are almost upon us. We are one of the final events on the programme, so I guess they have saved the best until last in what will be a very competitive race.

“People ask me would you prefer to have your event earlier in the schedule but it really doesn’t bother me either way.

“I just know I am much better prepared for the experience having gone through the whole process four years ago. On that occasion I was fresh out of college and my eyes were wide open like a bug. But I’ve learned to handle my emotions better and I’m used to regularly performing on the European circuit in front of large crowds.

“Everyone is keeping their distance from me at the moment. I don’t think they want to unleash the dragon. I’m like a race horse ready to go. But am I confident I can secure Olympic qualification? Yes, I am.

“I’ve learned so much and the 100m Hurdles is the type of event where experience really counts.”

Lolo

Source: IAAF

USA’s World Indoor 60m Hurdles champion Lolo Jones is already well into her competitive outdoor season, and in her latest diary for the IAAF website she reflects on her faster than usual times at the start of the season, and the enjoyment and difficulties of travelling around the international circuit with the peril of lost luggage always at the back of an athlete’s mind.


“Hi again,

It is nice to be back competing again and after three competitions this year I’ve been running a lot faster than I normally run at this time of year. I started the season with victories in Baton Rouge (12.72) and in Drake (12.74) and then went on to Doha and finished second (behind Brigitte Foster-Hylton) in 12.65.”

Note: since this diary was written, last weekend - 24 May - Lolo ran and won in Hengelo in 12.87.

“Doha was a weird race because I got my arms tangled up with Josephine Onyia and I hit hurdles five, six and seven. At one point I didn’t even think I would finish the race, so I was pleased to clock 12.65 for second. It was certainly a lot faster than last year when I started out in the 12.80s before then moving on to the 12.70s.

Doha is also a long way from America and you always feel you hit the wall with tiredness when you get there. The problem was my luggage went missing along with Allyson Felix’s and Virginia Powell’s. I always carry my essentials such as kit and spikes in my hand luggage because I’ve lost my luggage so many times, but it still meant I had to wear the same outfit for three days. I am sponsored by Asics, but because most athletes are sponsored by Nike or Adidas it is not even like I can easily change clothes to match my sponsor.

Thankfully, because I was travelling, I wore a bunch of layers on the plane, so one day I was wearing a long sleeves, another day a tank top. It is always funny seeing the crazy ways athletes have to dress when they have so few clothes to choose from after losing their luggage!

Now I move on the European leg of the season where I hope to run five times before returning back home for the US Trials. I plan to compete in Hengelo on Saturday (see note above) before going on to Belgrade, Berlin, Oslo and Ostrava. This could change, but I don’t mind regularly competing because I know I’m going to have to race two races each day over two days at the Olympics and my body has to become used to those demands.

I enjoy travelling around Europe, although I don’t get to see a lot other than the hotel or track. I just enjoy competing in countries such as Germany, Belgium or Great Britain because their fans have a good knowledge of athletics and, usually, full stadiums. Some athletes have already been running crazy, fast times in the 100m hurdles this year but you expect that because it is an Olympic year.”

Lolo

Source: IAAF

Lolo Jones, the 2008 national and world indoor hurdle champion, visited her alma mater, Roosevelt High School, on April 23, 2008. Lolo presented her high school track team with a contribution of $3,000 as well as a new pair of Asic running shoes to each member of the girls track team.











Photos courtesy of Iowa Sports Weekly.

World Indoor 60m Hurdles gold medallist Lolo Jones talks about preparing for the new season and her ‘taste of the summer’ at the annual Ponchatoula Strawberry Festival in her latest online diary for the IAAF.

“Hi, back again and the first thing I’ve got to say is I can’t wait to start my season at the Drake Relays at the weekend, if only as a break from the training.

“Everything is pretty hard core at the moment with the running and the weights. The 6x200m sessions are really tough because I’m expected to run every one quicker than the previous one and I’m on all fours on my hands and knees at the end of each session.

“Honestly, the only part of training I normally like is the weights training, but recently I’m not too sure I like that anymore because it has all been so tough.

“My training partner Stephanie Durst (a 22.48 200m runner) pushes me hard in training and as you would expect from a 200m runner, she gets the better in the 200m session – but I don’t like to give even half an inch and in the 60m to 100m sessions it is a lot closer, we are very competitive.

“Although training is hard at the moment I do like to make sure I do at least one thing each week as a release from the stresses and strains of training.

“Last week I bought a kayak and went out on the lakes for a couple hours and I can see myself doing it more often, although mainly in the off season.

“I also recently went to the Strawberry Festival at Ponchatoula in Louisiana. Many people associate California with strawberries but Louisiana has some beautiful strawberries, too, and I went along because a sister of a pole vaulter on the team was the Strawberry Queen at the Festival.

“It was so nice to go because it felt like a real taste of summer for me. As an American track and field athlete we miss all the summer festivals because we are away racing in Europe, we even miss out on celebrating the fourth of July.

“Seeing everyone have fun was great and I’ll definitely try and go again next year. By then I might actually feel like eating a strawberry again.

“I bought a crate of strawberries but I’m a little sick of them now, especially as everything at the festival had a strawberry flavour, whether that be strawberry shortcake, strawberry cheesecake even strawberry wine!

“But for now I’m looking forward to starting my season at the Drake Relays in my home town of Des Moines. It has a nice Mondo track there and a big crowd and it is one of the few meetings here in America which is close to being like a European meeting.

“My eldest brother still lives there and I’ll be meeting with my mum, sister and dad for a real family reunion. I’ll also be giving a talk to my kids at my old High School, Theodore Roosevelt.

“But the main aim is to start my season off with a victory in the hurdles where I hope to break my meeting record.”

Lolo

Source: IAAF

Here's a German article I just found:

Lange Zeit war Hürdensprinterin Lolo Jones nur eines von vielen hübschen Gesichtern in der Leichtathletik-Welt. Doch damit ist jetzt Schluss! Seit kurzem weiß die US-Amerikanerin, wie es sich anfühlt, wenn aus anderen Gründen zu einem aufgeblickt wird und man Respekt bekommt für das, was man auf der Laufbahn geleistet hat.

Fest macht das die 25-Jährige, die im Internet als „Hottie“ und „Sexy Hurdler“ gelistet ist, auf YouTube in Deutsch trällert und sich über die eigene Homepage runlolorun.com in Szene setzt, insbesondere an einer Begegnung mit dem US-Basketballstar Michael Jordan bei einem jüngsten Sponsorentermin in Florida.

„Bei der Veranstaltung waren viele Promis. Michael Jordan war von seinem PR-Leuten und Bodyguards abgeschirmt. Deshalb hatte es eine Weile gedauert, bis ich mit ihm sprechen konnte. Als ich ihm als Weltmeisterin vorgestellt wurde, war er sehr höflich und hat mich mit einem starken Händedruck begrüßt“, berichtet sie.

„Gold, wie cool ist das denn?“

Nun wird Lolo Jones, die gerne vor dem Fernseher sitzt oder Videogames spielt, wohl noch mehr Hände schütteln müssen, neue Türen werden sich öffnen. Davon konnte sie früher nur träumen. Nun aber soll ihr Hallen-Weltmeistertitel, mit dem sie am 8. März ihre tolle Indoorsaison krönte („Meine erste Medaille ist Gold, wie cool ist das denn?“), das Sprungbrett zu weiteren Erfolgen sein. Denn gerade davon hatte die in Baton Rouge (USA) lebende Athletin bislang zu wenig.

Seit drei Jahren ist sie als Profi im internationalen Hürdenwald unterwegs. Es war keine leichte Zeit, nachdem man ihre Karriere mit dem Verpassen der Olympia-Qualifikation vor vier Jahren zwischenzeitlich schon mit einem ganz dicken Fragezeichen versehen musste. Lolo Jones war für eine Weile am Boden, wusste kaum, wovon sie leben sollte. Sie musste sich hocharbeiten, ihr Leben über den Sport wieder in den Griff bekommen.

Von der Garnierung zum Hauptgericht

Es gelang. Trotzdem war sie in der Leichtathletik eine ganze Weile nur eine unter vielen, mehr Garnierung als Hauptgericht. Erst im letzten Jahr schaffte sie es schließlich bei den US-Meisterschaften auf das Treppchen und damit zur Qualifikation für die WM in Osaka (Japan), wo sie als Sechste ihre Möglichkeiten andeutete und sich achtbar schlug.

Ihr bislang bestes Jahr war allerdings schon 2006, als sie ihre Bestzeiten auf den flachen 100 Metern (11,24 sec) ebenso verbesserte wie den immer noch gültigen Hausrekord auf ihrer Paradestrecke, den 100 Meter Hürden (12,56 sec).

Sieg in Demut

An diese Leistungen gilt es nun gerade in diesem Olympiajahr anzuschließen. Die zurückliegende Hallensaison, in der sie ihre Bestzeit auf den 60 Meter Hürden auf 7,77 Sekunden steigerte, sollte Lolo Jones Selbstvertrauen geben, doch die nun mit Gold gekrönte Athletin bremst die Euphorie: „Susanna Kallur hatte sich in Valencia verletzt. Von den beiden Kanadierinnen war eine krank, die andere ist gestürzt. Michelle Perry und Virginia Powell waren nicht dabei. Es war ein Sieg in Demut.“

amit weiß sich das hübsche US-Girl, das in ihrer Familie nicht nur (afro-)amerikanische, sondern auch französische und norwegische Wurzeln findet, im Konzert der Besten realistisch einzuordnen.

Ungewohntes Medieninteresse

Aber doch konnte sie nun nach dem Erfolg in Spanien schon einmal den Ruhm einer Weltmeisterin in vollen Zügen genießen. „Ich war schon ein wenig überrascht von dem Interesse nach dem Hallen-WM-Titel. Ich war ausgebucht mit Interviews für Magazine. Ich weiß nicht genau, warum sie so interessiert an mir sind.“

Doch die Kombination aus einem attraktiven Äußeren und einem jungen Erfolg, der eben doch sexy macht, kann Lolo Jones gerade im Olympiajahr, in dem in den USA wieder mehr Aufmerksamkeit auf die Leichtathletik gerichtet ist, kaum schaden.

Und einer Sache ist sie sich schon in Vorfreude bewusst: „Was mich jetzt antreiben wird, ist die Vorstellung vor einem Wettkampf. Bei einer Michelle Perry dauerte es immer fünf Minuten, bis der Sprecher fertig war und dann kam: ‚Lolo Jones auf Bahn sechs’. Jetzt werde ich endlich etwas anderes hören.“

Lolo Jones, Hallen-Weltmeisterin 2008. Eine demütige Triumphatorin.

Source: Leichtathletik.de

Lolo Jones struck gold at the World Indoor Championships in Valencia earlier this month with a silky smooth performance in the 60m Hurdles. In her first online diary Lolo writes about how her life has changed after her first major championship success, her future plans and what it was like to meet basketball legend Michael Jordan.

“It’s been a pretty hectic time since the World Indoor Championships in Valencia and I’ve just been to Florida for an Oakley presentation where I’ve met some pretty cool people. Oakley, my personal eyeglass sponsors, have just launched their first sunglasses made specifically for female athletes.

“I put some input into the design of the glasses and it’s been super-exciting be involved. In the past they made just unisex glasses which did always quite look right for women because men have a bigger head. These glasses are really, really light, fit across the bridge of a girl’s nose better and come in more feminine colours like lipstick red.

“There were lots of celebrities at the presentation including Michael Jordan, who was surrounded by his PR people and bodyguards. It took quite a while to set up the chance to chat with him but after I was introduced as a World champion he was super-polite and gave me such a strong handshake. I suffered a bit of a black out and I can’t remember too much about what I said to him, except saying something like he was the best basketball player ever and he said it would be a pleasure to watch me on TV.

“I have been a bit surprised with the level of interest in me since winning the World Indoor title. I made a speech at the Oakley presentation and I was completely booked out with interviews from magazines. I don’t know why they have been so interested in me, but I like to offer my fitness advice and tips to the average Joe in the magazines.”

On training since Valencia…

“I was given one week off and then one week’s active rest in which I would do weights but no running. I told my coach (Dennis Shaver) I was ready to come back after a week but he told me to take one week’s active rest. I’m back to training next week and I can already picture returning back to full training and throwing up again during the hard sessions.”

On her future competition plans…

“I plan to open at the Drake Relays (Apr 24-26) and then do a couple of American meetings and maybe a couple of Golden League meetings. But I need to sit down and draw up a proper schedule before the American Trials.”

On her confidence since winning gold in Valencia…

“You would think that I would be more confident than ever, but I’m also humble. Susanna Kallur pulled out injured (in Valencia) and of the two Canadians one got sick (Angela Whyte) and the other tripped over a hurdle (Priscilla Lopes-Schliep).

“There was also no Michelle Perry (the world 100m hurdles champion) in Valencia or Virginia Powell (two-time US champion), so I’m humble in victory.”

Lolo

Source: IAAF