A look back at Nia Ali's medal-winning performance at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro (2024)

Editor's note: This story first appeared in The Press in Aug. 18, 2016.

Nia Ali is an Olympic medal winner.

The 2006 Pleasantville High School graduate finished second in the 100-meter hurdles to earn the silver medal in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday night.

Ali was part of a U.S. sweep.

Brianna Rollins won the race in 12.48 seconds. Ali finished second in 12.59 seconds and Kristi Castlin was third in 12.61 seconds. Rollins is the first U.S. athlete to earn a track and field gold in these Olympics. It is the first time the U.S. has swept the 100 hurdles in Olympic history.

"I knew it was going to take a lot of discipline," Ali told an NBC announcer after the race. "I knew it was going to be very hard to even just medal because everybody was going out there with the same goals in mind.

"I'm just happy me and these ladies were able to pull it off. We prayed hard about this and we didn't let the distractions get to us, so it was great."

Ali is the first graduate from a Cape-Atlantic League high school to win an Olympic medal since 1999 Bridgeton graduate Nadia Davy earned a bronze medal as part of the Jamacian 4x400 relay team.

Rollins, Ali and Castlin posed on the track with American flags after the race was over.

The three waited for the final results to be posted together.

Ali could be seen saying “C’mon, c’mon, c’mon.”

They smiled, jumped and hugged when the sweep was posted.

Ali’s 15-month-old son, Titus, sat in the stands with Ali’s mom, Melita Johnson, and watched the race. Johnson and Titus were shown on the NBC broadcast before the race started. NBC later showed Johnson and Titus celebrating in the stands after the race.

Ali and Titus then took a victory lap around the track.

Ali started strong and surged during the final 50 meters to finish second.

Ali lives and trains in Los Angeles. She qualified for the final by winning her semifinal heat in 12.65 seconds earlier Wednesday night.

Ali, 27, didn’t show any signs of nerves before the semifinal. She smiled and waved to the crowd with both hands when she was introduced before the race.

There were three semifinals run Wednesday. The top two finishers in each event, plus the next two fastest times, advanced to the final.

Ali grew up in the Germantown section of Philadelphia. She moved to Pleasantville for her senior year of high school. Ali’s family is close with Pleasantville track and field coach Alan Laws. They come from the same Philadelphia neighborhood, and Ali refers to Laws as her uncle.

Ali won the 100 hurdles championship at the 2006 New Jersey outdoor track and field Meet of Champions. She still holds the Cape-Atlantic League 100 hurdles record with a time of 13.65 seconds.

Ali will occasionally drop by a Pleasantville practice when she’s on the East Coast. She donates spikes to the program. Ali said her time in Pleasantville gave her the foundation for her future success.

“I was with some of the hardest working people I’ve ever been around,” Ali said in an interview last month. “They eat, breathe and sleep track and field. It instilled a lot of confidence in me to go to the next level. They’ve always believed in me. Everyone in Jersey has had my back, and I appreciate that.”

The silver medal caps what has already been stellar season for Ali. She wowed the track and field world March 18 when a little more than 10 months after giving birth to her son, she won the 60 hurdles at the world indoor championships. Ali also won the 60 hurdles at the 2014 world indoor championships. She won the 100 hurdles at the 2011 NCAA Championships while at the University of Southern California.

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