2 min readWhile Team USA brought home some serious hardware in the last couple of weeks in Paris, they’ve managed to add one more gold to the final tally—except this one was earned 12 years ago, during the London Games.
While competing in the 2012 Olympics, Lashinda Demus took silver in the 400-meter hurdles, losing out to Russia’s Natalya Antyukh by a mere .07 seconds. Demus was the favorite to win the event, and she says that missing out on the gold ultimately cost her endorsement deals.
However, after the Russian doping scandal and the country’s subsequent ban from the Games, Demus was able to reclaim her rightful place at the top of the podium during a medal allocation ceremony in Paris on August 9, in which 10 other athletes participated after it was determined their competitors had been doping.
The ceremony itself was a product of Demus’s campaigning. With the help of a lawyer, Demus and the rightful silver and bronze medalists lobbied the International Olympic Committee to receive a ceremony during the Paris Games. In the past, medal reallocations have occurred in less glamorous settings like offices or even through the post office. The Paris ceremony featured a crowd in front of the Eiffel Tower, and Demus says she is glad she fought for the ceremony to be held during the Olympics.
“It was absolutely important to me to get this medal at an Olympic Games,” Demus told Runner’s World. “I wanted it initially in the actual Olympic stadium, but I understand all the rules that go along with that, but being at the Olympic Games was a must.”
Demus was surrounded by family, including four children, of which only two were born when she crossed the finish line in 2012. Today, Demus is a track coach at Culver City High School after stepping away from the sport for several years to become a clinical researcher for a medical care company.
Other athletes present at the ceremony include Zuzana Hejnová of the Czechia and Kaliese Spencer of Jamaica, who finished behind Demus in the 400 hurdles and received silver and bronze, respectfully, and American high jumper Erik Kynard, who finished second to a Russian who was found to be doping. During the ceremony, Kynard joined Demus as the only other Olympian to earn a gold medal.
Laura Ratliff is a New York City-based writer, editor, and runner. Laura's writing expertise spans numerous topics, ranging from travel and food and drink to reported pieces covering political and human rights issues. She has previously worked at Architectural Digest, Bloomberg News, and Condé Nast Traveler and was most recently the senior editorial director at TripSavvy. Like many of us, Laura was bitten by the running bug later in life, after years of claiming to "hate running." Her favorite marathon is Big Sur.
