Williams Advances To Olympic Semifinal

Aug. 20, 2004

Athens, Greece (hurricanesports.com) – Former University of Miami sprinter Lauryn Williams (Rochester, Pa.) won her second round heat in a time of 11.03 seconds to advance to Saturday’s 100-meter semifinal at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.

Williams, the 2004 NCAA National Champion at 100-meters, posted the second fastest time of second round in defeating a world class field including Zhanna Block (Ukraine), ranked fifth in the world, Debbie Ferguson (Bahamas), ranked ninth in the world, and Ivet Lalova (Bulgaria), who has the fastest time in the world this season.

“Only God knows what is going to happen tomorrow, but everyone is going to bring everything they have,” said Williams after her race. “The atmosphere here is great. All the fans cheering and yelling really gets you fired up.”

Ferguson, a volunteer assistant coach at the University of Miami, placed third in the heat in a time of 11.16 second to also advance to the semifinals.

The 100-meter semifinals are schedule to begin tomorrow at 1:20 p.m. (ET). The top four from each heat will move on to the Olympic final scheduled for later that day at 3:55 p.m. (ET).

Fans can watch Lauryn Williams’ second round race tonight during NBC’s prime time coverage.