Johnson C. Smith University(JCSU) alum Shermaine Williams will compete in the London Olympics with Jamaica’s national team after performing well at the Jamaica National Senior Championships held at National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica.
Williams won third place in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 12.79 seconds at the event, qualifying her to become the first female Olympian to attend JCSU.
Williams graduated from JCSU in 2011 as a 13-time All-American and five-time national champion. She was featured on the cover of the NCAA Champions magazine in 2009 and currently holds five JCSU records, including the best times in the 60-meter hurdles, 100-meter hurdles, 200-meter hurdles, 4×100-meter relay and 4×400-meter relay.
The St. Andrews, Jamaican-born Williams will be joined by fellow 2011 JCSU graduate Leford Green in London. Green qualified for the Olympics after winning the Jamaican national crown in the men’s 400m hurdles.
Green, born in St. Catherine, Jamaica, won the 400-meter hurdles championship at the Central American and Caribbean Championships in the 2010 and 2011.
Williams and Green are the first JCSU alum to compete in the Olympics since Vince Matthews competed and won gold in the 1968 Mexico City and 1972 Munich Olympics. Matthews set world records in the 4×400-meter relay in ‘68 and the 400-meter in ‘72.
The Olympic hurdles events are scheduled to start on Aug. 6.