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Olympic star Lolo Jones has turned in her running shoes for new bobsled gear!

The 30-year-old athlete ran track and field for Team USA during the 2012 Olympic games, but now she’s the newest member of the national bobsled team.

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According to Essence.com, Jones discovered her new love for bobsledding by accident.

“At first I thought bobsled was just going to be something fun and refreshing for me, so I’m shocked that I really do love it a lot,” she said. “I’m so passionate about track, so I never imagined that I would ever say I’m really passionate about bobsled, too. I’m shocked at how much it has helped me get stronger not only physically, but mentally as well. It’s done wonders,” she said.

Another thing I love about bobsledding is that they recruit a lot of athletes who didn’t reach the pinnacle in their sport. We have so many track and field athletes who aren’t pro athletes but once they come to bobsledding, they are amazing bobsled athletes. It’s a ‘second wind’ sport. There are no bobsled teams in high school so bobsled has to recruit heavily from other sports. Your past failures in bobsled mean nothing.

After leaving last year’s Olympic games without a medal, some critics have called Jones’ new bobsledding venture a desperate measure to earn a medal.

“They completely took my words out of context,” she explained. “When I heard those rumors, I was pretty frustrated because it was like here we go again with things being taken out of context. If you’re pursing an Olympic sport, who’s not trying to get a medal? I just stated the obvious and I said I was desperate but it was said in much more joking way.”

Despite the ups and downs in her career, Jones says her faith in God has inspired her to push forward.

“With my faith, I know I can’t rely on myself. I’m going to fail. I’m going to make mistakes and so I have to rely on Jesus to help me through them. I cannot tell you how many times the Bible has given me so much strength and peace to get through so many different circumstances and storms,” she said. “I’m human and there are things I will fail at but God can turn it around for His greater purpose.”

We wish Lolo the best in her new sport and look forward to seeing her at the 2016 Olympic games in Brazil.

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