Darold Williamson (2002-05) Ran Anchor for Baylor, USA 4x400 Relays
3/25/2021 2:35:00 PM | Track & Field
(This is the 23rd in a series of features on Baylor Athletics' 25 for 25, which honors Baylor's top 25 athletes in the 25-year history of the Big 12 Conference (1996-21). Selected by a panel of Baylor experts, the final list was picked from a pool of over 100 candidates that came from all 19 intercollegiate sports that the school offers. Through April 1, two honorees per week will be released and will also be featured during game broadcasts on the Baylor Sports Network from Learfield IMG College.)
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
During a golden era that established Baylor as "Quartermiler U.," Darold Williamson was the anchor leg for 4x400 relay teams that won a combined seven Big 12 titles (indoors and outdoors), national indoor titles in 2002 and '04 and the 2004 NCAA Outdoor championship.
"It was special," said Williamson, a 2016 Baylor Athletics Hall of Fame inductee. "We were a dominant team and we had a lot of fun times. We enjoyed the memories we made. Just to be able to compete with the guys that we did, to have the coaches we had, to be able to travel all over the country to these different universities, and to compete and do well, that's priceless."
Williamson, now 38, also had individual success, winning four-straight Big 12 Outdoor 400-meter titles, earning a total of 13 All-America honors and winning the 400 meters at the 2005 NCAA Outdoor Championships with a time of 44.51. In the semifinals, he was clocked in 44.27, which still ranks as the fastest ever run a Baylor sprinter at a collegiate meet.
The summer after his junior season at Baylor, Williamson made the finals of the 400 at the USA Olympic Trials, finishing fourth behind Baylor teammate Jeremy Wariner and Nike-sponsored professional runners Otis Harris Jr. and Derrick Brew.
That put him in the relay pool for the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece, but Wariner seemed like a more logical choice for running the anchor leg, particularly after he led a 1-2-3 American finish in the 400 meters. But, since Baylor went undefeated with Wariner and Williamson running the third and fourth legs, respectively, he said, "I didn't want to ruin that."
With Williamson taking the handoff from Wariner and running the anchor leg, the USA 4x400 relay beat runner-up Australia by nearly five seconds with a winning time of 2:55.91.
"It made me feel good to know that my team, the coaches had the confidence in me to anchor," Williamson said. "To be the anchor for the three guys that finished first, second and third in the 400 meters, obviously, that gives me a lot of confidence as well. I was certain that I'd be in a good position, and I was.
"Crossing the finish line (in first place), that's dreams. When you're a track athlete, you dream of being a gold medalist. To accomplish that, to achieve that, it was amazing. It was just a great experience."
Turning pro after his senior season at Baylor, Williamson finished second in the 400 at the 2005 USA Championships and seventh at the IAAF World Championships. He added gold medals in the 4x400 relay at the 2005 and 2007 World Championships and was in the relay pool again for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
As a competitor, though, it was tough sitting on the sidelines and basically being a spectator as the U.S. won the 4x400 relay again.
"To watch it was tough," he said. "Sometimes, it's tough running for the U.S., knowing that country only gets three spots and we have the talent to fill the lanes. I'm watching guys from other countries that I know can compete with and have beaten in the past. But, only three lanes for the U.S. It was definitely tough."
Returning to school a year later, Williamson finished his undergrad degree in education.
"Track is a tough sport," he said. "My summers, I was in Europe and all over the world, in China and Australia and all these places. I miss that, I miss traveling, I miss seeing the world, and I do miss the competition. But, it takes a lot to be away from everything and make that kind of sacrifice. For me, what it would take to be as great as I needed to be running, I wasn't willing to do that anymore, and I wanted to change things up."
Darold and his wife, LaJuana, a conference track champion at Texas State in the 200 meters and triple jump, have three daughters, Dior, Dani and Dilyn, and one son, Dash.
After being involved in computer sales for about five years, Darold and LaJuana started Olympic Homes in 2017. A full-service real estate solutions firm, Olympic Homes specializes in buying distressed homes in the Greater Atlanta area at a significant discount and reselling them to retail home buyers and landlords.
"There's a lot of opportunity in Atlanta, a lot of older houses in the inner-city," Darold said. "Just like anywhere else, they're going to buy up those areas, as we are. You do what makes sense. If it's working, do it. And we have. We're making a living and helping people at the same time."
Previous:
Jeremy Wariner, Men's T&F (2003-04)
Tiffany Townsend, Women's T&F (2008-11)
Odyssey Sims, Women's Basketball (2010-14)
Kelly Shoppach, Baseball (1999-2001)
Daniel Sepulveda, Football (2002-06)
Brette Reagan, Softball (2006-09)
Yossiana Pressley, Volleyball (2017-21)
Kiara Nowlin, Acrobatics & Tumbling (2013-17)
Johnathan Motley, Men's Basketball (2013-17)
Shea Langeliers, Baseball (2017-19)
Bayano Kamani, Men's T&F (1998-2001)
Jason Jennings, Baseball (1997-99)
Brittney Griner, Women's Basketball (2009-13)
Robert Griffin III, Football (2008-11)
Dawn Greathouse Siergij, Soccer (1997-2000)
Benedikt Dorsch, Men's Tennis (2002-05)
Corey Coleman, Football (2013-15)
Whitney Canion Reichenstein, Softball (2009-14)
Trayvon Bromell, Men's T&F (2014-15)
Stacey Bowers-Smith, Women's T&F (1996-99)
Andrew Billings, Football (2013-15)
Benjamin Becker, Men's Tennis (2001-05)
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
During a golden era that established Baylor as "Quartermiler U.," Darold Williamson was the anchor leg for 4x400 relay teams that won a combined seven Big 12 titles (indoors and outdoors), national indoor titles in 2002 and '04 and the 2004 NCAA Outdoor championship.
"It was special," said Williamson, a 2016 Baylor Athletics Hall of Fame inductee. "We were a dominant team and we had a lot of fun times. We enjoyed the memories we made. Just to be able to compete with the guys that we did, to have the coaches we had, to be able to travel all over the country to these different universities, and to compete and do well, that's priceless."
Williamson, now 38, also had individual success, winning four-straight Big 12 Outdoor 400-meter titles, earning a total of 13 All-America honors and winning the 400 meters at the 2005 NCAA Outdoor Championships with a time of 44.51. In the semifinals, he was clocked in 44.27, which still ranks as the fastest ever run a Baylor sprinter at a collegiate meet.
The summer after his junior season at Baylor, Williamson made the finals of the 400 at the USA Olympic Trials, finishing fourth behind Baylor teammate Jeremy Wariner and Nike-sponsored professional runners Otis Harris Jr. and Derrick Brew.
That put him in the relay pool for the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece, but Wariner seemed like a more logical choice for running the anchor leg, particularly after he led a 1-2-3 American finish in the 400 meters. But, since Baylor went undefeated with Wariner and Williamson running the third and fourth legs, respectively, he said, "I didn't want to ruin that."
With Williamson taking the handoff from Wariner and running the anchor leg, the USA 4x400 relay beat runner-up Australia by nearly five seconds with a winning time of 2:55.91.
"It made me feel good to know that my team, the coaches had the confidence in me to anchor," Williamson said. "To be the anchor for the three guys that finished first, second and third in the 400 meters, obviously, that gives me a lot of confidence as well. I was certain that I'd be in a good position, and I was.
"Crossing the finish line (in first place), that's dreams. When you're a track athlete, you dream of being a gold medalist. To accomplish that, to achieve that, it was amazing. It was just a great experience."
Turning pro after his senior season at Baylor, Williamson finished second in the 400 at the 2005 USA Championships and seventh at the IAAF World Championships. He added gold medals in the 4x400 relay at the 2005 and 2007 World Championships and was in the relay pool again for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
As a competitor, though, it was tough sitting on the sidelines and basically being a spectator as the U.S. won the 4x400 relay again.
"To watch it was tough," he said. "Sometimes, it's tough running for the U.S., knowing that country only gets three spots and we have the talent to fill the lanes. I'm watching guys from other countries that I know can compete with and have beaten in the past. But, only three lanes for the U.S. It was definitely tough."
Returning to school a year later, Williamson finished his undergrad degree in education.
"Track is a tough sport," he said. "My summers, I was in Europe and all over the world, in China and Australia and all these places. I miss that, I miss traveling, I miss seeing the world, and I do miss the competition. But, it takes a lot to be away from everything and make that kind of sacrifice. For me, what it would take to be as great as I needed to be running, I wasn't willing to do that anymore, and I wanted to change things up."
Darold and his wife, LaJuana, a conference track champion at Texas State in the 200 meters and triple jump, have three daughters, Dior, Dani and Dilyn, and one son, Dash.
After being involved in computer sales for about five years, Darold and LaJuana started Olympic Homes in 2017. A full-service real estate solutions firm, Olympic Homes specializes in buying distressed homes in the Greater Atlanta area at a significant discount and reselling them to retail home buyers and landlords.
"There's a lot of opportunity in Atlanta, a lot of older houses in the inner-city," Darold said. "Just like anywhere else, they're going to buy up those areas, as we are. You do what makes sense. If it's working, do it. And we have. We're making a living and helping people at the same time."
Previous:
Jeremy Wariner, Men's T&F (2003-04)
Tiffany Townsend, Women's T&F (2008-11)
Odyssey Sims, Women's Basketball (2010-14)
Kelly Shoppach, Baseball (1999-2001)
Daniel Sepulveda, Football (2002-06)
Brette Reagan, Softball (2006-09)
Yossiana Pressley, Volleyball (2017-21)
Kiara Nowlin, Acrobatics & Tumbling (2013-17)
Johnathan Motley, Men's Basketball (2013-17)
Shea Langeliers, Baseball (2017-19)
Bayano Kamani, Men's T&F (1998-2001)
Jason Jennings, Baseball (1997-99)
Brittney Griner, Women's Basketball (2009-13)
Robert Griffin III, Football (2008-11)
Dawn Greathouse Siergij, Soccer (1997-2000)
Benedikt Dorsch, Men's Tennis (2002-05)
Corey Coleman, Football (2013-15)
Whitney Canion Reichenstein, Softball (2009-14)
Trayvon Bromell, Men's T&F (2014-15)
Stacey Bowers-Smith, Women's T&F (1996-99)
Andrew Billings, Football (2013-15)
Benjamin Becker, Men's Tennis (2001-05)
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