7 News Belize

The end of Jonathon & Jayson's Olympic Runs
posted (August 18, 2008)

Jonathan Williams made Belizean history on Friday when he advanced to the semi-finals of the 400 metre hurdles at the Beijing Olympics, the first time any Belizean runner had gone fast the first round in 40 years at the games. But that was as far as he would get. On Saturday the 24 year old Williams ran the same time of 49.64 seconds – and while that was good enough to get him qualified for the semi-finals, he needed to be about a second faster to get to the final. He wasn’t and that was the end of his Olympic run.

The result is much the same for Jayson Jones. He ran his qualifying heat in the men’s 200 meter on Monday morning in Beijing, which was Sunday night in Belize. He ran the race in 21.54 seconds and came in 6th of the 7 who completed the race.

With that, he failed to qualify and that also ends his Olympic bid. He does so with some controversy as the 31 year old’s mother had made a public flap about the Belizean Athletic Association not providing him with a new uniform for the Olympics. That claim was flatly denied by the vice president who called him a problematic athlete.

Both Jonathan Williams and Jayson Jones are born in the United States with a Belizean parent or parents. Tricia Flores is the next Belizean to compete. Her sport is the long jump and that is scheduled for 9:40 am, Beijing time, which is about 2 and a half hours from now.

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