Lauryn Williams (born September 11, 1983) is an American sprinter and

bobsledder Bobsleigh or bobsled is a team winter sport that involves making timed runs down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks in a gravity-powered sleigh. International bobsleigh competitions are governed by the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Feder ...

. She was the gold medalist in the

100 meter dash The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contest ...

at the

2005 World Championships in Athletics The 10th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), were held in the Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland (6 August 2005 – 14 August 2005), the site of the first IAAF ...

and won silver medals at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

, 2007 World Championships, and

2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 11th IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) was held in Moscow from March 10 to March 12, 2006 in the Olimpiyski Sport arena. The announcement by the IA ...

. She won a silver medal in the two-woman bobsleigh at the

2014 Winter Olympics , ''Zharkie. Zimnie. Tvoi'') , nations = 88 , events = 98 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , athletes = 2,873 , opening = 7 February 2014 , closing = 23 February 2014 , opened_by = President Vladimir Putin , cauldron = , stadium = Fisht Olympic ...

. A World Junior Champion in 2002, she went on to win the 100 m at the

2003 Pan American Games The 2003 Pan American Games were held in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, from August 1 to 17, 2003. The successful bid for the games was made in the mid-1990s, when Dominican Republic had one of the highest growth rates in Latin America. Al ...

and claimed the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

title over the distance for the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, incl ...

the following year. She has also featured as part of the American 4×100 meter relay team, winning gold medals at the 2005 and 2007 World Championships and at the 2012 Summer Olympics. Williams is one of six athletes to have won a medal in both the Summer and Winter Olympic games, as well as the first American woman to do so.

Career

Williams was born and raised in suburban

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

and

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

and currently resides in suburban Pittsburgh. She holds her high school records for the 100, 200m, long jump and 4x100 meters relay. She ran for The Wings of Moon Track Club founded by Coach Rubin Carter based in Moon Township, PA, a suburb near Pittsburgh. She was a star with the new club and qualified for the National Junior Olympics.

College

She attended the

, where she competed on the track team and graduated in 2004. She was inducted into the

Iron Arrow Honor Society The Iron Arrow Honor Society is an honor society at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida for students, faculty, staff and alumni. It is the highest honor that can be bestowed by the university. Founded at the University of Miami in 1 ...

, the university's highest honor.

Track career

Williams was a part of the 4x100 meter relay team at the

2003 World Championships in Athletics The 9th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, were held from 23 August to 31 August 2003 in the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, France. Men's results ...

, where she anchored the American team with Angela Williams,

Chryste Gaines Chryste Dionne Gaines (born September 14, 1970, in Lawton, Oklahoma) is an American Olympic athlete who competed mainly in the sprints. Education Gaines is a 1988 graduate of South Oak Cliff High School in Dallas, Texas.Inger Miller Inger Miller (born June 12, 1972) is a retired American track and field sprinter who competed in the 100 metres and 200 m. She is the daughter of Lennox Miller, an Olympic champion runner from Jamaica. She attended John Muir High School in P ...

in their heat. She did not run in the final. Later that season, she participated in the

in the 100 metre event. She went on to claim gold in a time of 11.12, followed closely by Angela Williams and

Liliana Allen Liliana Allen Doll (born March 24, 1970) is a track and field athlete, who started competing for Mexico in 1998. She previously represented Cuba. She won a bronze medal at the 1991 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 3rd IAAF World Indoor Cham ...

. Williams is a silver medalist in the

100 meters The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contest ...

at the

and a 4-time medalist at the

World Championships in Athletics The World Athletics Championships (until 2019 known as the World Championships in Athletics) are a biennial athletics competition organized by World Athletics (formerly IAAF, International Association of Athletics Federations). Alongside the Ol ...

, where she won (together with Angela Daigle, Muna Lee and

Me'Lisa Barber Me'Lisa Barber is an American sprinter. After graduating from University of South Carolina, she was the 2005 USA Outdoor Champion in the 100 metres and the 2006 World Indoor Champion in the 60 metres. She was also one of the 2003 World Champ ...

) a gold medal in the 4x100 m relay in 2005 and 2007, as well as gold and silver in the 100m in 2005 and 2007 editions of the meet. At the 2004 Summer Olympics, Williams ran the third leg for the women’s 4x100 relay team in the final.

Marion Jones Marion Lois Jones (born October 12, 1975), also known as Marion Jones-Thompson, is an American former world champion track and field athlete and former professional basketball player. She won three gold medals and two bronze medals at the 200 ...

, who ran the second leg, and Williams failed to complete the baton exchange within the 20-meter passing zone, resulting in disqualification of the U.S. team. In the Beijing Olympics of 2008, Williams ran the anchor leg in the relay, but a mix-up in the semi-final with team-mate Torri Edwards caused Edwards to drop the baton. Williams picked up the baton to finish in last place, but the USA was disqualified because she had had to run outside her lane in order to retrieve the baton. At the individual 100 metres sprint she placed 2nd in her first round heat behind

Christine Arron Christine Arron (born 13 September 1973) is a former track and field sprinter, who competed internationally for France in the 60 metres, 100 metres, 200 metres and the 4 × 100 metres relay. She is one of the ten fastest female 100 metres spri ...

in a time of 11.38 to advance to the second round. There she improved her time to 11.07 seconds and placed 2nd again, this time behind

Kerron Stewart Kerron Stewart (born 16 April 1984) is a retired Jamaican sprinter who specialized in the 100 metres and 200 metres. She is the 2008 Jamaican national champion in the 100 m clocking 10.80s. She defeate ...

. With the third time in her semi final heat behind

Shelly-Ann Fraser Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce OD, OJ (née Fraser; born December 27, 1986) is a Jamaican track and field sprinter competing in the 60 metres, 100 m and 200 m. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest sprinters of all time. On ...

and Muna Lee she qualified for the final in 11.10 seconds. In the final she came to 11.03, finishing in fourth place, behind three runners from

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

. Williams took third place in the 100 m at the 2009 US Championships and as a result she qualified for the

2009 World Championships in Athletics The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () were held in Berlin, Germany from 15–23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenburg ...

, her third consecutive championships. A week before the World Championships began, she was part of a United States 4 x 100 m relay team that ran the fastest women's sprint relay in twelve years. Williams,

Allyson Felix Allyson Michelle Felix (born November 18, 1985) is a retired American track and field athlete who competed in the 100 meters, 200 meters and 400 meters. She specialized in the 200 meters from 2003 to 2013, then gradually shifted to the 400 me ...

, Muna Lee and

Carmelita Jeter Carmelita Jeter ( , born November 24, 1979) is a retired American sprinter, who competed in the 60 metres, 100 m and 200 m. For over a decade, between 2009 and 2021, Jeter held the title as "Fastest woman alive" after running a 100 m personal be ...

finished with a time of 41.58 seconds, bringing them to eighth on the all-time list. She spent the entirety of 2010 away from competitive athletics and, among other things, she worked in the athletic department at the University of Miami. She returned to competition in 2011. In the 2012 Olympics in London, Lauryn Williams ran the anchor leg of 4 x 100 meter relay for USA in the qualification round. The team went on to win gold and earn a new world record with a time of 40.82

2014 Winter Olympics

On January 19, 2014 Williams won her first bobsled gold medal in a World Cup event at Igls, Austria. She was later selected to be a part of the U.S. Olympic 2014 women's bobsled team. On February 19, 2014 Williams along with

Elana Meyers Elana Meyers Taylor (born Elana Alessandra Meyers; October 10, 1984) is an American Olympic bobsledder and World Champion who has competed since 2007. Born in Oceanside, California, Meyers Taylor was raised in Douglasville, Georgia and is a gra ...

won the silver medal at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games. Their first run was a time of 57.26, a track record. Their second run was 57.63, the third was 57.69 and fourth was 58.13 for a total of 3:50.71, a difference of +0.10 from first place, just edged out by Canada 1. Williams is one of six Olympians, three Americans to win medals at the Winter and Summer Olympic Games. Eddie Eagan won Gold as a boxer in 1920 and on the bobsled in 1932. Eddy Alvarez won a Silver Medal in 2014 as a speedskater and another Silver Medal in Tokyo for baseball.

Major achievements

References

External links

Official websiteProfile at USA Track & Field
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Lauryn 1983 births Living people African-American female track and field athletes American female bobsledders American female sprinters American Ninja Warrior contestants Athletes (track and field) at the 2003 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Bobsledders at the 2014 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics Olympic bobsledders of the United States Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field Sportspeople from the Pittsburgh metropolitan area Track and field athletes from Pennsylvania Miami Hurricanes women's track and field athletes World Athletics Championships medalists World Athletics Indoor Championships medalists Medalists at the 2014 Winter Olympics Olympic medalists in bobsleigh Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) People from Rochester, Pennsylvania USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners World Athletics Championships winners Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games Olympic female sprinters 21st-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women