Womens 100 metres Final | 03 Aug 24 | |||||
Womens 100 metres Round 1 Heat 1 | 02 Aug 24 | |||||
Womens 100 metres Final | 21 Aug 23 | |||||
Sha'Carri Richardson (/ʃəˈkɛri/ shə-KERR-ee; born March 25, 2000) is an American track and field sprinter who competes in the 100 meters and 200 meters races. Richardson rose to fame in 2019 as a freshman at Louisiana State University, running 10.75 seconds to break the 100 m collegiate record at the NCAA Division I Championships. This winning time made her one of the ten fastest women in history at 19 years old.
In April 2021, Richardson ran a new personal best of 10.72 seconds, becoming the sixth-fastest woman of all time (at the time) and the fourth-fastest American woman in history. She qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics after winning the women's 100-meter dash with 10.86 in the United States Olympic Trials. On July 1, it was reported that Richardson had tested positive for cannabis use following her 100 m final at the U.S. Trials, invalidating her win and making her ineligible to compete in the 100 m at the Olympics. After successfully completing a counseling program, she accepted a one-month period of ineligibility that began on June 28, 2021. In July 2023, she became the US national champion in the women's 100 metres at the 2023 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, running 10.82 seconds.
Richardson won gold in the 100 m at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, beating Shericka Jackson and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in a new championships record time of 10.65 seconds. On the penultimate day of the 2023 World Championships, she would also go on to win gold as part of Team USA in the women's 4x100m relay final with a championship record of 41.03 seconds.
As a teenager, Sha'Carri Richardson won the 100 m title at the AAU Junior Olympics—the largest national multi-sport event for youth in the United States—in 2016, then another title at the USATF Junior Olympics in 2017. She made her international debut at the 2017 Pan American U20 Athletics Championships, where she won a gold medal in the 4 × 100-meter relay alongside Gabriele Cunningham, Rebekah Smith, and Tara Davis.
Richardson was raised by her grandmother Betty Harp and an aunt. In 2021, a week before her qualifying race for the 2020 Summer Olympics, her biological mother died. Richardson knew nothing of her mother's passing until she was asked about it by a reporter. Richardson said she smoked marijuana, in the state of Oregon where it is legal, after learning about the death of her biological mother.
She is noted for her long nails and colorful hair on the field, and she has stated that her style is inspired by that of Florence Griffith Joyner.
In 2021, Richardson stated that she has a girlfriend. She gave a Twitter shout-out to the LGBTQ community immediately after her win in June 2021.
World Athletics Championships 2023 USA Athletics |
2019-2023 |