From the land of sprint legends like Elaine Thompson-Herah and Shericka Jackson, another star is rising fast — Danielle Williams. At the inaugural Michael Johnson Grand Slam Track event, Williams made history, winning the women’s 100m and becoming the first Jamaican to shine in Johnson’s multi-million-dollar brainchild. She meant business from the start, exploding off the blocks and clocking a swift 11.54s to leave her rivals in the dust, including a world champion! And also recently, Williams won the 100 m hurdles at the Xiamen Diamond League with a clocking time of 12.53 seconds (-0.2w).
This dominant win had been brewing for a while — just think back to her impressive 100m hurdles performances! Such brilliant performances are the result of the hard work and resilience of the athlete, along with their coach. Let’s meet Danielle Williams’ coach, who helped her learn nuances.
Who is Lennox Graham?
Lennox Graham is Danielle Williams’ coach and is currently working as a Clemson University Long Sprints & Hurdles Coach. Graham is a 1984 graduate of Alabama State University who later completed his master’s in business administration from the University of New Orleans in 2006. He is also a business professional with 16 years of experience in NCAA coaching and recruiting and staff development. In addition to this, he has 12 years of senior international coaching with Team Jamaica and Team British Virgin Islands (BVI) at the Olympics, World Athletic Championships, Continental Cup, and Commonwealth Games.
Danielle Williams’ coach, Lennox Graham, also has certificates of IAAF Level V Elite Sprints and Hurdles and ACC Coaching The Whole Athlete Academy – Certificate of Completion. With all his achievements, there is the fact that he is the first coach to guide siblings to the same event final at the World Championships in Athletics. Yes, that’s right. Graham coached Danielle Williams and her sibling, Shermaine Williams. In the 100m hurdles final in Beijing, China, Danielle Williams finished 1st, and her sister Shermaine Williams placed 7th. Lennox Graham has achieved a lot in his life as a coach. Let’s find out what and how Graham’s career has been till now.
Lennox Graham’s career highlights and achievements
Associate head coach Lennox Graham has coached athletes for many championships, like the World Championships in Athletics, the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Jamaica’s World Junior Championships, the Olympic Games, and even the 1998 Jamaica’s CARIFTA Team to Trinidad, and several others. With training athletes like Danielle Williams, he has received many honors, like 2015-16 Atlantic Region Women’s Track and Field Head Coach of the Year, CIAA Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Coach of the Year, and Indoor as well in 2008-2009 and 2009-2010, respectively. These are just a few of his honors; he has a long list of such achievements.
From nurturing champions to making history on the world stage, Lennox Graham’s journey is a masterclass in coaching excellence. From helping the team to recognition at local stages to international levels, he has done it all. Graham guided Giano Roberts to win Clemson’s first-ever national title in the NCAA Championships’ men’s 60-meter hurdles in 2022–2023. After over ten years as head coach of Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, North Carolina, Lennox Graham is in his fourth season as an assistant coach at Clemson for the 2020–21 campaign.
In track and field competitions, both indoors and outdoors, Graham has coached 164 All-Americans, including world champion Danielle Williams. Let’s dive into the details of how Lennox Graham helped Williams to become a world champion.
Lennox Graham’s role in building Danielle Williams into a world champion
Throughout Williams’ Hall of Fame career at Johnson C. Smith University and her whole professional career, Graham has been her coach, helping her win two world championships and receive countless honors. Being a coach, he has in-depth knowledge of her areas of strength and growth, which has been crucial to her ongoing success. The Jamaican Danielle Williams has claimed world titles in 2015 and 2023. Graham once said, “The biggest challenge is balancing loading, unloading, and periodization while still ensuring she gets paid.” He further added, “This is her job. If she doesn’t race well, she doesn’t earn.”
This might be a harsh line, but that’s the truth. To be on top, an athlete has to work hard and keep going no matter what. Although Williams is not committed to every Grand Slam track meet, Graham pointed out that her participation in a few chosen events will be strategically timed to maintain her form. Being a coach, Lennox Graham already knew what and how Danielle Williams could perform better with each championship. Be it in the past or the recent, or when she became the first Jamaican to defeat American star at Grand Slam Track or Diamond League or be it the upcoming championship.
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