University Southern California Trojans
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/ Track & Field
Getting To Know Lauren Rain Williams
March 05, 2019 | Track & Field, Features
Sophomore sprinter Lauren Rain Williams transferred to USC this year from Oregon, and she is loving her time here in sunny SoCal. Last year she earned first-team All-America honors, and in the 2018 Desert Heat Classic she won the 200m with a PR of 22.51 while finishing third in the 100m with a PR of 11.29. Both of those times rank in Oregon's top 10. She also won the silver medal in the 200m dash at the 2018 World U20 Championships in Finland with a time of 23.09. We had a chance to catch up with and learn a little more about Williams the other day.  Â
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Q: What's the biggest difference between competing for Oregon compared to running here at USC?
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L.R.W: I just feel like it's a more family environment here, and that everyone is really caring and supportive of not just your athletics and your academics, but they care about -- especially Coach Caryl [Smith Gilbert] -- you as a person, and your growth as a person.
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Q: How has your sophomore year been different from your freshman year so far?
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L.R.W: I think last year going to college out of state was kind of hard and just adapting to the environment, especially coming from Southern California where it's sunny all the time, and there it was raining and cold and depressing. So I think coming back this year I have a different perspective on college itself, and how to manage my time better and just to do the academics part. But with the track part I think that just being a part of the USC track team has really helped me overall, and I think that it's made my sophomore year way better thus far. I've only competed once for USC, but  I'm way happier and healthier compared to my freshman year.
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Q: What made you decide to transfer from Oregon to USC?
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L.R.W: I thought that coming back home, especially since this is my home and was my dream school since I was nine, I thought it was the right time to come back. I didn't have the freshman year that I wanted, and I knew that I needed to make a change. I loved Coach Caryl's program from when I first signed, and I still love it now, and so I'm really glad to come back, and I'm really appreciative that she let me come back. I just wanted to be at home, closer to family, and be in the sun.
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Q: What made you first become interested in track?
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L.R.W: I was five years old and my parents just put me in an all-comers meet, and I won the 100m and 200m like my very first race with no training, and then I just really loved it. I played other sports as well, but track just really stuck with me, and I was really good, and I won my first national championship at the age of eight. So after that it was just like this is what I'm meant to do, and I love it!
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Q: What's your favorite event to run?
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L.R.W: It depends on the day, but the 100m and the 200m are both my favorites.
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Q: What achievement are you most proud of?
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L.R.W: I think 2015 World Youth Championships in Cali, Colombia, I had a silver medal, and even though it was a silver, I think it was my favorite achievement just because I worked really hard that year, and I executed my race really well. I can still remember it to this day, and I think the silver just represented so much more. I felt like I won even though I got silver. That was my first international race as well, and being able to compete for Team USA was just an overall great experience on and off the track.
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Q: How do you prepare for your races?
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L.R.W: Just making sure that I eat really well. I think for me preparing for my races doesn't just start the week of, but I think it starts back in the fall, so doing all the things that you need to do to prepare months in advance so that when the race week comes you don't have to worry about trying to get ready. You're already ready and just fine-tuning some things, so I think I just keep preparing each week as the season goes on so I can stay prepared.
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Q: What was it like growing up in a very athletic family?
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L.R.W: I was always doing sports, my cousins and I were always doing sports and activities, so it was pretty fun! We were always very active and my parents both used to run track and my dad played football and basketball, so I've just always been accustomed to being active.
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Q: Did you ever feel any pressure to do sports growing up?
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L.R.W: No, not at all. I felt like my parents never really pushed me to do one sport or another. They just let me pick which one I liked. My parents were both good in track at their age, but I never felt pressured. I always felt like I could just be myself, and I am who I am, and I never had to compare to my parents, so that was cool!
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Q: Is there anything unique about you that you didn't include in your bio?
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L.R.W: I like to play the piano. I haven't played recently because I just don't really have that much time, but sitting in my house is a baby grand piano that I occasionally play.
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Q: What's the biggest difference between competing for Oregon compared to running here at USC?
Â
L.R.W: I just feel like it's a more family environment here, and that everyone is really caring and supportive of not just your athletics and your academics, but they care about -- especially Coach Caryl [Smith Gilbert] -- you as a person, and your growth as a person.
Â
Q: How has your sophomore year been different from your freshman year so far?
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L.R.W: I think last year going to college out of state was kind of hard and just adapting to the environment, especially coming from Southern California where it's sunny all the time, and there it was raining and cold and depressing. So I think coming back this year I have a different perspective on college itself, and how to manage my time better and just to do the academics part. But with the track part I think that just being a part of the USC track team has really helped me overall, and I think that it's made my sophomore year way better thus far. I've only competed once for USC, but  I'm way happier and healthier compared to my freshman year.
Â
Q: What made you decide to transfer from Oregon to USC?
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L.R.W: I thought that coming back home, especially since this is my home and was my dream school since I was nine, I thought it was the right time to come back. I didn't have the freshman year that I wanted, and I knew that I needed to make a change. I loved Coach Caryl's program from when I first signed, and I still love it now, and so I'm really glad to come back, and I'm really appreciative that she let me come back. I just wanted to be at home, closer to family, and be in the sun.
Â
Q: What made you first become interested in track?
Â
L.R.W: I was five years old and my parents just put me in an all-comers meet, and I won the 100m and 200m like my very first race with no training, and then I just really loved it. I played other sports as well, but track just really stuck with me, and I was really good, and I won my first national championship at the age of eight. So after that it was just like this is what I'm meant to do, and I love it!
Â
Q: What's your favorite event to run?
Â
L.R.W: It depends on the day, but the 100m and the 200m are both my favorites.
Â
Q: What achievement are you most proud of?
Â
L.R.W: I think 2015 World Youth Championships in Cali, Colombia, I had a silver medal, and even though it was a silver, I think it was my favorite achievement just because I worked really hard that year, and I executed my race really well. I can still remember it to this day, and I think the silver just represented so much more. I felt like I won even though I got silver. That was my first international race as well, and being able to compete for Team USA was just an overall great experience on and off the track.
Â
Q: How do you prepare for your races?
Â
L.R.W: Just making sure that I eat really well. I think for me preparing for my races doesn't just start the week of, but I think it starts back in the fall, so doing all the things that you need to do to prepare months in advance so that when the race week comes you don't have to worry about trying to get ready. You're already ready and just fine-tuning some things, so I think I just keep preparing each week as the season goes on so I can stay prepared.
Â
Q: What was it like growing up in a very athletic family?
Â
L.R.W: I was always doing sports, my cousins and I were always doing sports and activities, so it was pretty fun! We were always very active and my parents both used to run track and my dad played football and basketball, so I've just always been accustomed to being active.
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Q: Did you ever feel any pressure to do sports growing up?
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L.R.W: No, not at all. I felt like my parents never really pushed me to do one sport or another. They just let me pick which one I liked. My parents were both good in track at their age, but I never felt pressured. I always felt like I could just be myself, and I am who I am, and I never had to compare to my parents, so that was cool!
Â
Q: Is there anything unique about you that you didn't include in your bio?
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L.R.W: I like to play the piano. I haven't played recently because I just don't really have that much time, but sitting in my house is a baby grand piano that I occasionally play.
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