Des Moines native Lolo Jones, now a U.S. Olympian, returned home on Saturday to compete in the 100-meter hurdles at the Drake Relays.

The photo finish the hometown crowd was hoping for didn’t come true. Jones finished a close second place to Tiffany Ofili. Jones finished in 12.88 while Ofili clocked a 12.66.

Despite not winning the race, Jones knew the situation could have been worse.

“Not racing in my hometown would have been devastating,” Jones said. “It sucks to lose, but it would have hurt more if I would have been in the stands.”

Jones claims she is coming off her worst indoor season of her career and has been hampered by injuries in recent months. She feels that hampered her training and her conditioning for this race.

As the hometown hero, she also had extra pressure put on her plate.

“The other girls come in and their families aren’t here and they didn’t grow up around the corner, so sometimes it’s better to have that kind of atmosphere,” Jones said. “That way you can have a clear mind to run.”

Other public relations commitments were also on Jones’s plate upon arriving back in Des Moines. 

During her visit, Jones met with a Des Moines middle school as part of the Ask, Listen, Learn program. The ALL program is a program that tried to get the message out to young kids to be active and stay away from underage drinking.

Jones knows the importance of being active and is also aware that the countries children are becoming even more obese. 

“The kids are our future,” Jones said. “They are our future olympians, so if we don’t help out the kids now and send that message, you might not have another Iowan to root for.”

Jones described talking to the middle schoolers as the highlight of her week.

The 2012 Drake Relays likely won’t be a training stop in Jones’ schedule. With 2012 being an olympic year, Jones’s focus will be mainly on the games.

“I love running and competing, but I don’t think it’s beneficial to have three races where you have to peak at the beginning and the end,” Jones said. “I felt like I had to peak (here) and it’s only the first race. That can be kind of hard.”

Jones already has four Drake Relay titles under her belt and has trips to Japan, Korea and Europe scheduled in the near future.