An Olympian who is said to still be a virgin at 42 years old has been very open about why she hasn’t had sex. Lori Susan ‘Lolo’ Jones first spoke about her celibacy back in 2012, remaining candid about it ever since.
The American is one of the world’s most accomplished hurdlers, specialising in the 60- and 100-metre hurdles. She’s got a number of titles to her name and has also competed at the Olympics on the US national bobsled team as a brakewoman.
But despite her achievements, one of the main things discussed about Jones remains her virginity. And she’s even claimed that not having sex has put her at a disadvantage in sport due to not having a ‘pressure release’.
The athlete said back in her twenties that sticking to her virginity is the ‘hardest thing’ she’s ever done.
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“Harder than training for the Olympics, harder than graduating from college, has been to stay a virgin before marriage,” she told HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel in 2012.
But Jones has explained that as a devout Christian, she is waiting until after marriage to have sex.
The Olympian said her virginity was a ‘gift’ she wanted to give her future husband.
But during a 2020 appearance on Kevin Hart’s Cold as Balls series, she admitted revealing her abstinence so publicly had a major impact on her love life and chances of finding said husband.
“That killed all my dates after that. Before, at least I had a chance,” Jones admitted. “Before, I'd like, tiptoe. 'OK, when's a good time to tell him? Do I wait until he sees my personality a little bit? Or do I just drop the bomb?'”
And it’s not just her dating life the star has been open about as a result, but the impact she reckons no sex has had on her athletic performance.
Jones claimed: “Having sex actually helps you as an athlete, a female athlete. So, I'm running at a disadvantage.”
She believes she has a ‘higher level of intensity’ because she has no ‘pressure release’.
“Everybody knows me as stressed out,” she added.
It’s not clear quite how much truth there is to this theory though. A 2019 study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine concluded that ‘sex had no statistically significant effect on athletic performance’.
And yet, there are athletes like Jones who believe performance does improve after sex.
Well, guess she’ll have to wait until if she gets married to find out.
Jones has opened up about freezing her eggs to try and ensure she can have a family in the future as she grows older.
She said in an Instagram post in 2022: "Nothing has scared me more than feeling like I’m running out of time to have a family.
"I originally wanted to freeze my eggs when I was in my early 30s. I just kept thinking I will meet my husband and things will all work out.
"Well here I am almost 10 years later and it hasn’t."
Topics: Olympics, Sport, Sex and Relationships
Jess Battison