Lolo Jones Leans on God After Olympics Loss, Being 'Ripped Apart' in Media
U.S. Olympic track and field athlete Lolo Jones has turned to God for support in the wake of her loss in the women's 100-meter hurdles final on Tuesday, which came after a New York Times piece criticizing her athletic abilities. The hurdler almost burst into tears on the "Today" show Wednesday when discussing the media scrutiny she has received.
The star athlete, an outspoken Christian, tweeted about her faith in God after placing fourth in the highly publicized 100-meter hurdle race.
Jones came in behind Australian gold medal winner Sally Pearson, the defending champion, and Americans Dawn Harper and Kellie Wells. Jones missed winning a medal by one-tenth of a second.
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"In room singing Desert Song by Hillsong. It's on repeat. Lord Jesus please comfort me, guide me, and heal my broken heart," Jones tweeted Tuesday afternoon.
Jones then tweeted again, thanking all of her fans for their support, adding in a follow-up tweet, "Also want to thank u Lord for giving me technically the best seat in the Stadium to watch the 100mh final. Congrats Sally, Dawn, and Kellie."
Jones nearly broke into tears in an interview while on NBC's the "Today" show Wednesday morning in response to an article published by The New York Times on Aug. 5, two days before her race.
The article, entitled "For Lolo Jones, Everything Is Image", said the Olympic athlete's popularity "was based not on achievement but on her exotic beauty and on a sad and cynical marketing campaign."
Jones told NBC's Savannah Guthrie Wednesday that "the fact that they just tore me apart it was just heartbreaking."
"They should be supporting our U.S. Olympic athletes and instead they just ripped me to shreds. I just thought that that was crazy because I worked six days a week, every day, for four years for a 12-second race and the fact that they just tore me apart, which is heartbreaking," Jones told Guthrie.
"They didn't even do their research, calling me the Anna Kournikova of track. I have the American record. I am the American record holder indoors, I have two world indoor titles. Just because I don't boast about these things, I don't think I should be ripped apart by media. I laid it out there, fought hard for my country and it's just a shame that I have to deal with so much backlash when I'm already so brokenhearted as it is," she added.
Jones is no stranger to the feeling of heartbreak that accompanies losing an Olympic race. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she came in 7th place in the same 100-meter hurdle competition, after tumbling over a hurdle.
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