Can Lolo Jones Run It Back to the Rio Olympics?

Lolo Jones in slow motion is a rare sight. But last October, it was the only speed the three-time U.S. indoor champion in 60-meter hurdles could move as she sat on a stationary bike, dressed in a striped hospital gown at Vail Valley Medical Center, in Vail, Colorado.

Just six hours after having surgery to repair a torn hip labrum, Jones pedaled gingerly, a black brace wrapped around her waist and down her thigh. She spent the following weeks binge-watching Grey's Anatomy and relying on assistance to get in and out of bed.

"Honestly, I'm not going to lie, I did lose my mind for a little bit," Jones said of her rehab. "But I'm pursuing a goal. I'm going after it."

Jones is attempting to qualify for this summer's Rio Olympics. It would be her fourth, including the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, where she competed in the bobsled. This time around, she hopes to author a different ending.

At the Beijing Olympics in 2008, Jones was favored to win gold in the 100-meter hurdles; she finished seventh after she clipped the ninth of ten hurdles in the final. Four years later in London, Jones—who had undergone spinal surgery the year before and wasn't even expected to make the American squad—missed the podium by a tenth of a second. The bronze medal instead went to teammate Kellie Wells.

The dream of winning an Olympic medal hasn't dissolved for Jones, a 33-year-old Iowa native, even though as recently as a few months ago she needed crutches just to get around. She last competed at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix on February 14th in Boston, where she placed fourth in the 60-meter hurdles. In April, Jones withdrew from the Drake Relays because of a tweaked hamstring, the same reason she decided not to race in the American League Track Meet in Atlanta earlier this month.

The U.S. Olympic Team Trials at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, next month will be Jones's first outdoor race since the surgery—her second procedure in a year, after she had a torn labrum in her right shoulder repaired in October 2014. Jones competed in five meets during the indoor season, where she focused on honing her technique—her block start, her stride pattern to and over the first hurdle—figuring out how to improve after she clipped a hurdle and placed fourth in her comeback race at the Camel City Invitational on January 30th.

"When you focus on the finish line and not actually each step in the race, that's where you usually run into problems," Jones said. "Every race is a learning experience."

Jones's quick return to training and competition following surgery didn't surprise Louisiana State University track coach Dennis Shaver, who has continued to work with Jones since she graduated from the school in 2004 as a three-time national champion.

"Any time she's had any kind of injury, she's always been able to stay ahead of schedule on rehabilitation because she's pretty disciplined and dedicated on what she can do to get back to full swing," Shaver said. "She's probably as strong and as powerful as she's ever been in her career."

A week after her hip bone was shaved and reattached, Jones moved into the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs to rehab and train—mostly biking and swimming—three times a day for two months in an effort to accelerate her recovery and fitness. "Shoulder surgery was the hardest surgery I've had," Jones said. "Hip surgery was painful, but it was like, 'Man, another surgery.' I never missed a day [of rehab]. It was important for me to not miss one appointment because I was fighting everyday to get back.

"I had overwhelming stress. My motivation was low, but I told myself that if I could just get to the [physical therapy] appointment, I'd be fine."

Jones was transparent about her progress on social media, posting videos and photos, including her first time stepping over hurdles on November 6th; the caption read, "In less than a year I need to be the fastest to become The Olympic Champ but I can't even run right now."

The real test will begin on July 7th, when Jones steps to the start line for the first round of the women's 100-meter hurdles at the Olympic Trials. Jones will enter a stacked field of competitors who aren't just faster but also younger—runners like Jasmin Stowers and world champion Brianna Rollins, both 24 and among the top five American 100-meter hurdlers in 2015. Seven of the world's top ten women's 100-meter hurdlers are from the United States, including 23-year-old Keni Harrison, who enters with the world's fastest mark of 12.24 seconds this season. Only three American women in the event will advance to compete in Rio.

Three-time Olympic gold medalist Gail Devers says no hurdler's fate is scripted, no matter her age. "People assume that in sports your window of opportunity is very short and the older you get, that window is closing. I don't believe that," said Devers, who broke her own national record in the 100-meter hurdles at age 33.

In the final race of Devers's career, she recorded the fastest indoor time in the world, winning her fifth title at the Millrose Games in the 60-meter hurdles at age 40.

"It's mind over matter at this point," Devers said. "Hurdles become innate. [Jones has] hurdled long enough. She obviously wants it. Now how far can she get? How fast can she get there? How much is she going to do?"

Jones will turn 34 on August 5th; she rejects the notion that 2016 will be her final chance to make a Summer Olympic team. Indeed, the fact that no 100-meter hurdles medalist in the past five Olympic Games was older than 31 doesn't ruffle her. Instead, she says, "it fires me up."

"It's great to win a medal at 23, 27," Jones said. "That's awesome. But how much sweeter would it be for me to go to the Olympics and be the first 'old' hurdler to medal?"

Jones laughed.

"I'm open to sponsorships. If someone wants to help me cover up my grey hairs, let's do it."

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