It’s been a remarkable journey from Rochester High School to the Sochi Winter Olympics for Lauryn Williams. She’s gone from being one of the most gifted sprinters in the history of Pennsylvania high school track and field, to a decorated career at the University of Miami, and then became a multiple World and Olympic medalist representing the USA in Track. Now, in one of the more remarkable transformations you will ever see from an athlete, Williams is now setting her sights on Olympic gold in 2-man Bobsledding.
Williams, who won Olympic gold as a member of the United States 4×100 relay at the 2012 Summer Games in London, is looking to become only the second American Olympian to ever win medals in both the Winter and Summer games. If she is able to medal, she would join Eddie Eagan, who won gold medals in Boxing (1920) and 4-man Bobsled (1932)
Williams joins fellow Olympic track star Lolo Jones as “pusher/brakeman” who essentially use their track speed and explosiveness to push a 400 pound sled approximately 30 meters before making their way down the bobsledding course at speeds that can reach upwards of 90 miles per hour. It was a conversation she had in passing with Jones that led Williams to decide to give the sport a try. On the surface, it may seem to be an odd fit, but William’s world class speed and compact size (she’s 5’3 and 155 pounds) give her a distinct advantage in her role of getting the bobsled moving down the track as quickly as possible before weaving its way down the course.
That’s not to say the transition has been easy or seamless. In a recent interview with the Miami Herald, Williams explained what it was like to ride on a Bobsled for the first time, “Its like being inside a washing machine going down the side of a mountain…The first time I did it, I was swearing and praying all the way to the bottom.” In spite of the very real dangers, and having to overcome the obvious fear of participating in a sport so new to her, Williams has done well enough to be rewarded with the honor of riding in the top sled, USA-1. Her partner, Elana Meyers, is generally considered the American’s best driver in the sport, and the tandem is considered a true challenger for a gold medal in the event.
For Williams, this story is just one of many amazing ones during her athletic career. At Rochester High School, Williams career on the track is the stuff of legend. As a PIAA champion in the 100, 200, and 4×1 relay, her times were among the best ever ran in PIAA history and she still holds the AA records in both the 100 and 200 meters. Anyone associated with the sport will tell you the story her remarkable performance as the anchor of the state champion 4×1 (Do yourself a favor, Youtube it). The performance is still talked about as one of the more remarkable individual efforts you will ever see.
After a stellar career at the University of Miami, which included an individual title in the 100 meters, she became a professional, and made Team USA to compete in the 2004 games in Athens. Only mere months after finishing college, Williams won silver in the 100 meters, and became not only a local hero, but one of the worlds best sprinters. Sadly, the 2004 games would arguably be the highlight of the next 8 years on the track for Williams. She would go on to win a World Championship in both the 100 and 4×1 in 2005, but Olympic gold always seemed to be just out of reach.
Two highly publicized relay exchange gaffes involving Williams in the 2004 and 2008 Olympics dogged her over the years, but all of that finally changed after winning the gold as part of the 4×1 relay at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Though she did not run in the final, her performance in the preliminary round helped her team to gold, and her dream of winning the ultimate prize in Olympic competition finally came true.
Now, Williams will compete Tuesday morning in pursuit of an Olympic double that has only happened once, ever; Winning Olympic gold in the Summer and Winter games. In training runs leading up to tomorrow’s competition, the results were mixed and included a head on collision with a wall at the end of the course. However, it seems that a second sequence of of training runs proved to be more fruitful. Williams and Meyers were able to complete the fastest training run of the day by any tandem, hopefully a harbinger of great things to come when it counts.
The competition begins Tuesday morning at 10:15 AM with two runs and will culminate with two final runs Wednesday morning at 11:15. The lowest aggregate time of the four runs will be awarded the gold. Good luck to Pittsburgh’s own Lauryn Williams and hope you will be able to tune in an watch her on her quest for not only Olympic gold, but Olympic history.
AP Photo/Martin Meissner
