Lolo Jones finishes fourth in 100-meter hurdles

Associated Press photo by Daniele BadolatoFormer LSU star Lolo Jones wins the 100 meters hurdles at the Primo Nebiolo meet on June 8 in Turin, Italy. Jones will compete in the 100 hurdles at the Olympic Trials beginning Friday in Eugene, Ore.

LONDON — Former LSU All-American Lolo Jones saw her bid for an Olympic medal come up one spot short as she finished fourth in the 100-meter hurdles final Tuesday at Olympic Stadium.

Jones recorded a season’s-best time of 12.58 seconds, but finished one-tenth of a second behind bronze medalist Kellie Wells of the United States.

“At least this time it was a clean, smooth race,” she said. “I wish I had a better result.”

Australia’s Sally Pearson set an Olympic record in winning the gold medal in 12.35, while 2008 gold medalist Dawn Harper of the USA settled for silver (12.37).

Earlier Tuesday, Jones qualified for her second straight Olympics final by finishing third in her semifinal heat in 12.71 seconds. Her semifinal time was the sixth-fastest of the eight athletes who earned spots in the final.

Still, it wasn’t enough.

“As an athlete, you never want to make excuses. I did the best I could tonight with the cards I was dealt,” Jones said. “In ’08, I tasted the medal. Here, I was just clawing my way through each round and trying to get on the (Olympic) team. ... I kind of figured I was out of the medals, but I was saying a prayer that I could sneak in.

“I’ll definitely be reading my Bible to try to grasp the positives and see what God has to teach me from all this. That’s the only way I feel I can get rebalanced right now because I’m so heartbroken.”