Nov. 5, 2012
This year marks the tenth anniversary of the University of South Carolina Women’s NCAA Outdoor Track and Field title that they secured in Baton Rouge, La., on June 1, 2002. The NCAA Championship was the school’s first-ever team title in any sport for the Gamecocks. Thirteen members of the squad combined to earn 128 All-American honors over the course of their collegiate careers.
In the weeks leading up to the All-Sports Reunion, GamecocksOnline.com will feature members of the 2002 NCAA Championship team.
Lashinda Demus
Birthplace: Inglewood, Calif.
Current Home: Toluca Lake, Calif.
Currently…Training for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Caring for her twin sons whom she affectionately calls the “twindigs”, Duaine Mayrant, the eldest by a minute, and Dontay Mayrant.
Athletic Accomplishments:
As a Gamecock:
- 11-time All-America
- 4-time NCAA Champion
- 2002 Indoor – 4x400m (Bass, Demus, Stoddart, Washington) (3:30.36)
- 2002 Outdoor – 400mH (54.85)
- 2002 Outdoor – 4x400m (Ross, Washington, Bass, Demus) (3:26.46 – school record,)
- 2003 Indoor – 400m (51.79)
- 2002 National Female Athlete of the Year (Track and Field News)
- 2002 SEC Outdoor Female Athlete of the Year, SEC Indoor and Outdoor Freshman of the Year
After South Carolina:
- Two-time Olympian – Athens 2004 (while a junior at South Carolina), London 2012
- Missed 2008 Beijing Olympics by .14 after coming back from the June 2007 birth of her twin boys
- 2012 Olympic Silver Medalist in 400mH
- World Championships
- 2005 – Silver – 400mH
- 2009 – Silver – 400mH
- 2009 – Gold – 4 x 100m
- 2011 – Gold – 400mH (Demus recorded the third fastest time ever, and set the current American Record with a time of 52:47, a record that had stood for 16 years)
NCAA Memories:
Event(s) competed in at the NCAA’s:
- 400mH (54.85) – NCAA Champion
- 4x400m – NCAA Champion (Ross, Washington, Bass, Demus) (3:26.46 – fastest time in South Carolina History)
- 400m (3rd)
Favorite NCAA Championships Memory: Being the first ever to do it for our school. We’re in the history books and nobody can take that away from us.
South Carolina Memories
Favorite South Carolina Memory: Doing our chants every time we won a meet or an event. We did a chant, but we did it in our own special way so it wasn’t like what you heard at a football game. We tweaked it to make it our own.
Why did you choose South Carolina? I wanted a change of scenery (from her home in California) and at that time, they had the best 400 runners in the country. I had always wanted to go where the best athletes were. It just all added up to me going to South Carolina. A for sure thing.
What are you most looking forward to about coming back to Columbia? I love the southern hospitality. I miss that. I’m originally from Southern California and I learned so much respect and community. It’s just pleasant to be around. That’s what I miss about leaving there and coming back to Southern California, the warm feeling you get there. It’s like going to grandma’s house. I can’t wait to get back and see how everything has improved. The football team is good now and they’ve done so much on campus.
Then | Now
No one knows this about me: I love to dance and listen to good music | I come from a family of twins. My great grandmother had four sets of twins (20 kids in all) and my grandfather was one of them
Hobbies: Dancing, reading books | Paula Deen cooking, reading, yoga
Career Goal(s): Graduate from college with a job living comfortably; run in the Olympics at least once | Entrepreneurship, I want a couple of franchises, Own a sports complex of my own.
Greatest Athletic Thrill: Running so well in the Outdoor Nationals in 2001 against the pros | Winning the Olympic Silver Medal in 2012
Connect with Lashinda:
Twitter: @LashindaDemus
Website: LashindaDemus.net
Instagram: @ldemus
The members of the 2002 NCAA Championship team will be honored in Columbia, S.C., on Nov. 9 and 10 as a part of the All-Sports Reunion.
