Lolo Jones attempted to console Jamaica's Brigitte Foster-Hylton following her fall in the 100-meter hurdles preliminary heat.

Stu Forster/Getty Images

LONDON -- The heartbreak was written all over Lolo Jones' face, except it wasn't her dreams that were shattered this time. In the sixth preliminary heat of the women's 100-meter hurdles, it was Jamaica's Brigitte Foster-Hylton, a former World Champion, who tripped over a hurdle and saw her last shot at a medal slip away. At age 37, Foster-Hylton was running in her fourth, and likely last, Olympic Games.

At the finish line, Jones quickly rushed over to Foster-Hylton and tried to put an arm around her. But Jones knew very well there was nothing she could do or say to ease the pain. Four years ago, she clipped the ninth hurdle in the final and dropped from first to seventh place because her lead leg came over a barrier a fraction of an inch too low.

Monday morning at the Olympic Stadium in East London, everyone was reminded once again just how cruel the 100-meter hurdles can be. It can cut a world champion down in less than 13 seconds flat, rendering four years of work into a puddle of tears. Few know the feeling as intimately as Jones.

"My heart breaks for Brigitte," Jones said moments after she qualified for Tuesday night's semifinal with her season-best time of 12.68 seconds. "I'm just devastated for her because she's been so dominant, and for her not to have an Olympic medal, I'm devastated for her.... I tried [to console her], but honestly, the emotions were outpouring from her. If she would've punched me, I totally would understand because... we work so hard for this."

Her voice cracked and tears appeared to well in her eyes, as if she was reliving her Beijing blunder all over again. In 2008, her misstep garnered a mountain of coverage, particularly because she had been the gold-medal favorite heading into Beijing. She handled the utter disappointment with grace, speaking with reporters and seeing out her responsibilities before convulsing with tears inside the Bird's Nest. It's a race that continues to haunt her -- and not just on the track.

The attention she received that night in Beijing, and in the subsequent years since, has become the hot topic of the moment. Jones is not the favorite to win gold in London on Tuesday night, but she has received more media coverage and marketing opportunities than Australia's Sally Pearson, the 2011 world champion who led qualifiers after running 12.57 seconds, or U.S. teammate Dawn Harper, the reigning Olympic champion. In part because of her physical beauty and her relative openness about her personal life and struggles, Jones has become a popular and accessible subject for news outlets -- both sporting and otherwise. But now, that openness has bred backlash.

A New York Times story published last week suggested that Jones was actively capitalizing on her misfortunes for attention. "Essentially, Jones has decided she will be whatever anyone wants her to be -- vixen, virgin, victim -- to draw attention to herself and the many products she endorses," the story read.

The Times suggested her image far outsized her performance, comparing her to former Russian tennis player Anna Kournikova, who once ranked in the Top 20 but gained most of her fame for a pretty face despite having never won a WTA title. But while Jones may not be a favorite tomorrow night, that's not to say she never was. She hasn't won an Olympic medal, but she is a two-time Indoor World Champion in the 60-meter hurdles and has run the 100-meter distance as fast as 12.43, when she cruised through the semifinal in 2008. Only Pearson has run a faster time since. And though Jones' performances this season have been relatively meager, they should also be taken in the context of a recent hamstring injury and an August 2011 spinal cord surgery that left her essentially bed-ridden for weeks.

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Sarah Kwak: Lolo Jones' openness with personal life has bred unfair backlash