Aug. 11, 2012
LONDON - Former Nittany Lion Shana Cox closed out the efforts of a healthy contingent of current and former Penn State track and field stars at the London Olympics, Saturday in the 4x400-meter relay final at Olympic Stadium. Cox led off a sensational effort for Great Britain, helping her squad to a fifth-place finish in the final, via a season-best 3:24.76. The United States won the 4x400 with a finishing time of 3:16.87 - the fifth-fastest performance ever run by a women's squad.
Cox - the 2008 NCAA Champion in the 400-meters and 4x400 - had a stellar Olympic campaign overall, also competing in the open 400, where she qualified for the semi-final round. Cox was one of three Nittany Lion representatives in the sprints during the Games, as rising junior Kirsten Nieuwendam (Parimaribo, Suriname) competed for Suriname in the 200-meters, and 2008 graduate Dominique Blake was in London as a member of the Jamaican 4x400 relay pool.
Also competing during the Games was 2010 NCAA Champion Bridget Franek, who became the first Nittany Lion woman to make an individual track and field event final, qualifying for the final of the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Franek, who was competing for the United States, finished 14th in the final.
Volunteer Assistant Ryan Whiting, who was also on the U.S. roster, qualified for the final in the men's shot put, placing ninth.
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