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College of the Canyons

College of the Canyons Olympians

      Former COC volunteer assistant track coach and U.S.A. Track & Field hurdler Lashinda Demus finished with the silver medal at the 2012 London Games, with a time of 52.77. This wasn't her first appearance at the games, after appearing at the 2004 Olympics in Athens and narrowly missing the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, which were held only months after she gave birth to twins in 2007. 
     
  Long before she ever entered the coaching ranks, current COC assistant track coach Denean Hill made a name for herself as a three-time Olympian (1984, 1988, 1992) and gold medal winner, as part of the 4x400-meter relay team that brought home the gold in 1984. At the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea, Hill earned a silver medal as part of the same 4x400 team, before going on to run in the same event at the 1992 Games in Barcelona.
     
  Former COC volleyball player Linda Chisholm (1976-77), who eventually became an All-American at Pepperdine University, was also an Olympian at the 1984 games in Los Angeles. Chisholm, helped Team U.S.A. win a silver medal, finishing behind gold medal winner China. Chisholm was inducted into the COC Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005 and the California Beach Volleyball Association Hall of Fame in 2008.
     
  In 1984, former COC second baseman Flavio Alfaro, who was a member of the college's 1981 State Championship baseball team, participated in the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, as part of Team U.S.A. Because baseball was introduced as a demonstration sport that year, no medals were awarded. However, the team — which also included future MLB superstars Mark McGwire, Barry Larkin and Will Clark — would eventually finish in second place, losing to Japan by a score of 6-3 in the championship game.
         
  COC's orignial cross country and track & field coach Ed Jacoby got his career started at College of the Canyons, and built the program into a Desert Conference powerhouse. After COC, he continued his coaching success at Boise State University before moving to Northern Arizona University. But, in 1992, the seasoned coach was called upon to help Team U.S.A. track & field as an assistant coach during the 1992 games in Barcelona, Spain. Jacoby helped the team win 46 total medals, including 11 gold medals.