Dominic Smithers
An Olympian has said how revealing she was a virgin completely destroyed her dating life.
Lolo Jones is one of the most successful hurdlers in the history of US athletics, winning countless gold medals during her career.
Not content with her success in that event, though, the 40-year-old switched to become part of the country's bobsleigh team, again winning gold at the World Championships and competing at the Olympics.
The switch meant that she is one of the few athletes to star at both the summer and winter games.
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However, her laser focus and her religious beliefs have meant that her love life has suffered.
Jones has always been opened about the fact that she only wanted to have sex once she was married, and to start a family.
The sprinter revealed that she was a virgin on Twitter back in 2012. She then opened up about it during an interview on on HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.
Discussing the motivation behind her abstinence, Jones said it was the 'hardest thing' she'd done.
"It’s just something, a gift I want to give to my husband," she said. "But please understand, this journey has been hard.
"There’s virgins out there, I’m gonna let them know, it’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life.
"Harder than training for the Olympics, harder than graduating from college, has been to stay a virgin before marriage."
Jones later admitted that it was a 'mistake' to admit to being a virgin, as it really impacted her love life.
Speaking to Kevin Hart on his Cold as Balls podcast, she said: "That was a mistake. That killed all my dates after that — like didn’t even have a chance. Like before, at least I had a chance.
"Before, I’d like, tiptoe, 'Okay, 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 she told the comedian that not having sex actually impacted her sporting career.
"I have a higher level of intensity because I don't have any pressure release. Everybody knows me as stressed out," she said.
"Having sex actually helps you as an athlete, a female athlete. It's good for your hormones. So I’m running at a disadvantage."
Fearing that she was running out of time, last year she began the process of freezing her eggs after being told that she had a 'great egg reserve for her age'.
Despite being teased about her sexual inexperience, Jones said that she's taking steps to make sure she and her future partner can have a child of their own.
"I have made the right move to prepare for a family if me and my husband want to try to have kids one day, we have options," she said in a post to Instagram.
"No one should be shamed for taking their time to figure out who their life partner is.
"A woman shouldn’t be shamed for wanting biological kids or wanting to know what it’s like to be pregnant and carry her own child."