Oak Cliff, that’s her hood! After being banned from the 2021 Toyoko Olympics for testing positive for marijuana, Sha’Carri Richardson, who is from South Dallas and raised in Oak Cliff, will finally get a chance to compete at the Paris Olympics this summer for her shot to win an Olympic gold medal. Richardson has never competed in the Olympic games in her career. This will be the accomplished runner’s first time.
On Saturday, June 22, Richardson secured her spot in the 2024 Olympics at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field in Eugene, Oregon, at the famed Hayward Field on the campus of the University of Oregon. The 24-year-old sprinter smoked her competition by clocking a 10.71-second sprint in the 100 meters. This accomplishment officially makes her the fastest woman in the world this year, which qualifies her for a trip to France, where the women start racing on Aug. 2.
Richardson finished 0.9 seconds ahead of Melissa Jefferson, her training partner who won the 2022 U.S. championship. Jefferson clocked in at 10.80 seconds to qualify, while Twanisha Terry, another training partner of Richardson, secured the third spot with a time of 10.89 seconds, earning her place on the women’s 100-meter team in Paris.
“Every chapter I’ve been through in my life was designed to prepare me for this moment,” Richardson told NBC’s Lewis Johnson. “I cannot wait to go to Paris and represent.”
As Richardson approached the finish line, she triumphantly pounded her chest and celebrated her impending victory. After she crossed the finish line, she was overcome with emotion and dropped to one knee, expressing the depth of her feelings. Then, as the current fastest woman in the world rose to her feet, she united with her training partners, Jefferson and Terry, in a 3-way bear hug as the trio embraced being able to represent the U.S.A. in Paris on the Olympic team.
“The emotion was just joy because of the hard work I put in, not just physically on the track, but mentally and emotionally to grow into the mature young lady I am today,” she said.
Although Richardson finished with the fastest qualifying time on Saturday, she didn’t start as fast as she finished. In her semifinal race, she finished with a 10.86. In the preliminary round on Friday, with an untied right shoe, Richardson finished in 10.88 seconds — the fastest of any of the 34 sprinters spread over four races. Despite the rocky starts to both races, she won them both.
“That tells me I’m prepared,” she said in a post-race interview with NBC. “I just need to put it all together.”
In 2021, Richardson achieved victory on the same track by completing the race in 10.86 seconds, securing her qualification for the Tokyo Olympics. However, following a positive marijuana test shortly after, her win was invalidated, and she was handed a 30-day suspension by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), causing her to miss the Tokyo games.
During that time, Richardson said she was battling depression and had since then apologized for breaking the rules.
“I apologize,” Richardson said on NBC’s “Today” show. “As much as I’m disappointed, I know that when I step on the track I represent not only myself, I represent a community that has shown great support, great love. … I apologize for the fact that I didn’t know how to control my emotions or deal with my emotions during that time.”
Richardson had lost her biological mother and used marijuana as a stress reliever and coping mechanism, as many people in her age demographic do. Unfortunately, it was against the Olympic rules, and she had to be punished for it.
“We all have our different struggles, we all have our different things we deal with, but to put on a face and have to go out in front of the world and put on a face and hide my pain,” Richardson said. “Who are you? Who am I to tell you how to cope when you’re dealing with a pain or you’re dealing with a struggle that you’ve never experienced before or that you never thought you’d have to deal with. Who am I to tell you how to cope? Who am I to tell you you’re wrong for hurting?”
I took Richardson some time to shake back after the suspension. When she returned to the track in 2022, she failed to qualify for the U.S. team for the World Championships, held in Eugene, Oregon. However, in 2023, the record-breaking sprinter returned to her rare form. While running in the World Athletics Championships, Richardson won the first U.S. championships in 10.65 seconds, a personal record and event record held in Budapest, Hungary. In that race she beat out Shericka Jackson and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce—both of Jamaica—, who previously beat her at the Prefontaine Classic.
Next week’s Jamaican qualifier will feature top athletes like Fraser-Pryce, Jackson, and the two-time defending champion Elaine Thompson-Herah, who collectively hold an impressive 19 Olympic medals. They will be vying for the opportunity to compete against Richardson in Paris.
Richardson’s journey to redemption was challenging, but after overcoming numerous obstacles last year, she declared, “I’m not back, I’m better,” and it seems to be true.
“I’d say the message I’m sending out is to believe in yourself no matter what,” Richardson said, echoing much the same thoughts from last year in Budapest. “You want to remain solid in yourself. Stay grounded in yourself and your hard work.”
The 2024 Paris Olympics will mark a significant moment in Richardson’s career as an American sprinter, offering her a prime opportunity to compete for an Olympic gold medal. A victory would secure her place in history as the first U.S. gold medalist in the women’s 100 since Gail Devers in 1996.
