CUTTIE PIE!! Lolo Jones crashes and burns

Jones crashes and burns, Harper’s surprise

American Lolo Jones lost control and “crashed and burned” to hand a surprise Olympic gold medal to her compatriot Dawn Harper in the women’s 100 metres hurdles on Tuesday.

The 26-year-old, who used her athletic and academic prowess to get her out of poverty and was favourite to win the race, finished seventh after hitting the penultimate hurdle.

“You hit a hurdle about twice a year where it affects your race,” said Jones, tears welling up in her striking green eyes. “It’s just a shame that it was on the biggest race of my life.

“The hurdles were just coming up very fast and I just told myself what I always tell myself, ‘keep things tight’.

“But it’s kind of like when you are racing a car and going max velocity and you hit a curve, either you can maintain control or you can crash and burn. Today I crashed and burned.”

Harper admitted she was a surprise winner.

“You have certain people that are supposed to be the favourites,” she said. “On this particular day, and at this time, you have to run your best race.

“It’s anyone’s race … we do hurdles, and they come at you really fast. You have to execute your race.”

GAVE SUPPORT

The 24-year-old said three-times Olympic champion Jackie Joyner-Kersee, who also comes from East St Louis and is the wife of Harper’s coach Bob Kersee, had given her support.

“She sent me an email telling me ‘You can do it, stay focused, it’s about you. When you race on that day and that time, focus on you’,” she said.

Harper did just that when Jones, who was leading the race, hit the hurdle.

“I felt something happened I didn’t know how serious it was but … you have to focus on you because if I got caught up in her, then who knows what’ll happen to me,” she said.

Sally McLellan was an equally surprising silver medallist for Australia and admitted that she had not believed her own prediction that she would win a medal. “I lied to you,” the 21-year-old said after a photo finish separated her from bronze medallist Priscilla Lopes-Schliep. “In my heart I didn’t think I’d medal. But then I did.”

Jones remained kneeling on the track for a long time after the race.

“It was difficult to get back up,” Jones said. “Tonight will be hard, tomorrow will be hard. I just have to get myself back up.” (Additional reporting by John Ruwitch and Gene Cherry; Editing by Ed Osmond)