A Clayton Middle school honor student will have a lot to tell her classmates when she returns to school later this month.
Danielle Williams recently competed in the National United States Amateur Track and Field (US ATF) Junior Olympic Championships in Sacramento, California. She was one of 7,524 athletes who competed at Sacramento State University, making the 50th anniversary event, the largest USATF Junior Olympics ever held west of the Mississippi.
Danielle participated in the 100 meter dash and advanced to the semi-final round where she has been officially ranked as 13th in the Nation among the 11-12 Female Division sprinters in the United States.
Nationwide among all of the 10,031 female US ATF 100 Meter Sprinters between the ages of 8-18, Danielle ranks 955th which means she is in the top ten percent of all female 100 meter sprinters nationwide. She is also ranked 33rd in the USA Youth Amateur Track and Field among the 11-12 years old female 100 meter sprinters.
Prior to the national track event, Danielle participated in the US ATF State Championship held at NC A&T University in June where she placed fourth in the State among 100 Meter Sprinters in her division. That propelled Danielle to attend the US ATF Regional III Championship in held at the Prince George Sports Complex in Landover, Maryland July 8th-9thwhere she placed fifth in the Region. It was at this meet where Danielle reached her best personal record of 13:03 seconds in the 100 meter dash.
This season was truly remarkable for her as she ran while injured during the entire regular season.
Her coaches at Evolution Track Club in Johnston County said Danielle loves God and knows her talents come from him. She is the daughter of Larry and Geia Williams. Contributed photo
