Florida's Will Claye Claims Olympic Bronze Medal in Men's Long Jump
Saturday, August 4, 2012 | Track and Field
Will Claye (U.S.A.) took home the University of Florida's first field event medal in history, turning in an historic performance in the men's long jump on the second day of track & field at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
Claye, who finished eighth in Friday's qualification round, leapt an astonishing 8.12m/26-7.75 on Saturday to earn a podium finish in the event. Claye's performance gave the United States its 48th medal in the men's long jump and its first since 2004 (Dwight Phillips-gold, John Moffitt-silver).
Claye has another medal opportunity later in the week, taking to the runway once again to compete in the men's triple jump alongside former Gator teammate and current Team USA teammate Christian Taylor (U.S.A.).
Kerron Clement (U.S.A.) advanced to the finals of the men's 400-meter hurdles, finishing third in his heat and fifth overall in a season's best 48.12. Clement, the reigning silver medalist from the 2008 Beijing Olympics, will compete in the finals of the men's 400-meter hurdles on Monday at 3:45 p.m. ET.
Tony McQuay (U.S.A.) finished second in his heat of the men's 400 meters (18th overall) in 45.48, advancing to Sunday's semifinals at 3:40 p.m. ET. McQuay and U.S. teammate Bryshon Nellum are the only competitors from Team USA remaining, as reigning Olympic gold medalist LaShawn Merritt did not finish.
“I could've executed a little bit better but I got the job done,” McQuay said. “I did my job and made it to the next round.”
Novlene Williams-Mills (Jamaica) finished third in her heat of the women's 400 meters (third overall) in 49.91, the fastest non-automatic qualifier, advancing to Sunday's final at 4:10 p.m. ET. Williams-Mills is looking for her first individual Olympic medal, having earned a silver medal with the Jamaican women's 4x400-meter relay in Athens at the 2004 Olympic Games.
McQuay and Williams-Mills are the Gators' only competitors for Sunday's races.
Genevieve LaCaze (Australia) turned in a personal best in the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase on Saturday, shattering the Florida school record once again. LaCaze finished in 9:37.90 to finish ninth in her heat. She did not advance to the finals of the event but improved upon her place as the fourth-fastest steeplechaser in Australian athletics history. LaCaze was one of five women in the qualification round to run a personal best and beat the 2012 NCAA Champion Shalaya Kipp (Colorado) in the process. LaCaze turned in a runner-up finish behind Kipp in Des Moines at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
To keep up with all the Gators at the Olympics, make sure to follow @OlympicGators on Twitter. For all of the latest information on Florida track and field, log on to www.GatorZone.com/trackfield or, for up-to-the-minute updates, follow the team's Twitter account @GZTrackField or www.twitter.com/GZTrackField. You can also find the Gators on Facebook.
| FLORIDA TRACK & FIELD MEDAL COUNT | |||
| NAME | COUNTRY | EVENT | MEDAL |
| Will Claye | U.S.A. | Men's Long Jump | Bronze |
| GATORS AT THE 2012 OLYMPIC GAMES – TRACK & FIELD | ||||
| Gator Athlete | Country | Time (ET) | Round and Event | Result |
| FRIDAY, AUGUST 3, 2012 | ||||
| Kemal Mesic | Bosnia | 5:00 AM | Qualification: Shot Put | 12th in flight (24th overall), 19.60m/64-3.75, did not advance to final |
| Kerron Clement | U.S.A. | 6:15 AM | Round 1: 400m Hurdles | 2nd in heat (2nd overall), season's best 48.48, advanced to semifinal |
| Novlene Williams-Mills | Jamaica | 7:00 AM | Round 1: 400m | 1st in heat (6th overall), 50.88, advanced to semifinal |
| Will Claye | U.S.A. | 2:50 PM | Qualification: Long Jump | 6th in flight (8th overall), 7.99m/26-2.75, advanced to final |
| SATURDAY, AUGUST 4, 2012 | ||||
| Tony McQuay | U.S.A. | 5:35 AM | Round 1: 400m | 2nd in his heat (18th overall), 45.48, advances to semifinals |
| Genevieve LaCaze | Australia | 6:35 AM | Round 1: 3,000m Steeplechase | 9th in her heat (22nd overall), 9:37.90 (PR), did not advance to final |
| Kerron Clement | U.S.A. | 2:00 PM | Semifinals: 400m Hurdles | 3rd in his heat (5th overall), 48.12 (SB), advances to final |
| Will Claye | U.S.A. | 2:55 PM | Final: Long Jump | WON BRONZE MEDAL, 8.12m/26-7.75 |
| Novlene Williams-Mills | Jamaica | 3:05 PM | Semifinals: 400m | 3rd in her heat (3rd overall), 49.91, advances to final |
| SUNDAY, AUGUST 5, 2012 | ||||
| Tony McQuay | U.S.A. | 3:40 PM | Semifinals: 400m | |
| Novlene Williams-Mills | Jamaica | 4:10 PM | Final: 400m | |
| MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 2012 | ||||
| Moise Joseph | Haiti | 5:50 AM | Round 1: 800m | |
| Kerron Clement | U.S.A. | 3:45 PM | Final: 400m Hurdles | |
| Tony McQuay | U.S.A. | 4:30 PM | Final: 400m | |
| TUESDAY, AUGUST 7, 2012 | ||||
| Will Claye | U.S.A. | 5:45 AM | Qualification: Triple Jump | |
| Christian Taylor | U.S.A. | 5:45 AM | Qualification: Triple Jump | |
| Shara Proctor | Great Britain | 2:05 PM | Qualification: Long Jump | |
| Moise Joseph | Haiti | 2:55 PM | Semifinals: 800m | |
| WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 8, 2012 | ||||
| Shara Proctor | Great Britain | 3:05 PM | Final: Long Jump | |
| THURSDAY, AUGUST 9, 2012 | ||||
| Kerron Clement | U.S.A. | 6:35 AM | Round 1: 4x400m Relay | |
| Tony McQuay | U.S.A. | 6:35 AM | Round 1: 4x400m Relay | |
| Will Claye | U.S.A. | 2:20 PM | Final: Triple Jump | |
| Christian Taylor | U.S.A. | 2:20 PM | Final: Triple Jump | |
| Moise Joseph | Haiti | 3:00 PM | Final: 800m | |
| FRIDAY, AUGUST 10, 2012 | ||||
| Novlene Williams-Mills | Jamaica | 2:10 PM | Round 1: 4x400m Relay | |
| Jeff Demps | U.S.A. | 2:45 PM | Round 1: 4x100m Relay | |
| Kerron Clement | U.S.A. | 4:20 PM | Final: 4x400m Relay | |
| Tony McQuay | U.S.A. | 4:20 PM | Final: 4x400m Relay | |
| SATURDAY, AUGUST 11, 2012 | ||||
| Novlene Williams-Mills | Jamaica | 3:25 PM | Final: 4x400m Relay | |
| Jeff Demps | U.S.A. | 4:00 PM | Final: 4x100m Relay | |
| Semifinal – Contingent Upon Advancing from Round 1 | ||||
| Final – Contingent Upon Advancing from Qualification or Semifinal | ||||
