U.S. 1st and 3rd after two bobsled heats; LoLo's duo 11th
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Rzhanaya Polyana, Russia (SportsNetwork.com) - Track and field star Lauryn Williams' transition to the ice has her on the verge of making history.
Hurdler Lolo Jones still has her work cut out for her.
Williams and teammate Elana Meyers posted the top times after the first two of four heats in the women's bobsled event on Tuesday, while fellow Americans Jamie Greubel and Aja Evans came in at third on the day.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Jones, who like Williams is also making the transition from track and field to bobsledding, was less successful. Jones and teammate Jazmine Fenlator posted the 11th-best time, a solid 1.84 seconds off the pace of Williams and Meyers.
American bobsledding has gotten plenty of attention thanks to the inclusion of Jones and Williams making up a pair of teams, that in addition to Greubel's duo, has the U.S. a strong contender to medal at the Sochi Olympics. Williams and Meyers did little to discount that notion, posting a top time of 1 minute and 54.89 seconds.
The two set a track record with a first-heat time of 57.26 seconds, then kept their hold on first place with a 57.63 second run.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Canada's Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse were second after the first heat and held that spot with a total time of 1:55.12 after two runs, putting them .23 seconds behind the first American team.
The 28-year-old Humphries took gold four years ago in Vancouver and won the world championship in both 2012 and '13. Moyse won gold with Humphries in 2010 after finishing fourth in 2006.
The team of Greubel and Evans finished their two heats with a time of 1:55.45, .56 ticks off the lead and .49 seconds ahead of fourth-place Belgium. Jones and Fenlator, in the third American bobsled, posted a time of 1:56.73.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Williams is a two-time Olympic medalist at the Summer Games, having won a silver medal in the 100-meter sprint at the 2004 Athens Olympics before grabbing gold in the 2012 Games in London. She ran the qualifier for the 400- meter relay and the U.S. went on to win the final.
The 30-year-old Williams is looking to become just the second Olympian to win gold medals in both the Summer and Winter Olympics. The other was American Eddie Eagan, who took gold in boxing in 1920 before winning in bobsledding during the 1932 Games.
Jones, meanwhile, is looking to reach a medal podium after some heartbreak in the Summer Games. She was on her way to winning the 100-meter hurdles in Beijing six years ago when she tripped over the second-to-last gate, then placed fourth at the London Olympics.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Medals will be awarded Wednesday after the completion of the third and fourth runs.