Reigning 100-meter world champion Sha’Carri Richardson secured her spot on the U.S. Olympic team for the 2024 Paris Games with a dominant victory in the 100-meter finals at the US Trials.
Richardson clocked a stunning 10.71 seconds on Saturday night to claim first place, marking her first Olympic Games qualification.
Richardson’s path to the Olympics was marked by impressive performances throughout the trials held at Hayward Field. She started strong on Friday, leading a field of 34 sprinters with a 10.88-second opening race, despite stumbling at the block and running the final 20 meters with an untied shoe. She then posted a semi-final time of 10.86 seconds to secure her place in the final.
Joining Richardson on Team USA are Melissa Jefferson and Twanisha Terry, who finished second and third, respectively, in the finals.
Historic year for Richardson
Sha’Carri Richardson’s qualification follows a historic year in which she clocked 10.65 seconds in Budapest, Hungary, last August, marking the fastest 100-meter sprint ever recorded at the World Athletics Championships. This time also ties for the fifth-fastest in history, just 0.16 seconds behind the world record of 10.49 set by Florence Griffith-Joyner in 1988.
At the World Championships, Richardson earned a bronze medal in the 200-meter race behind Jamaican sprinter Shericka Jackson and compatriot Gabriella Thomas, and anchored the American 4×100 relay team to another gold medal.
Richardson, who turned professional in 2019 after one season at Louisiana State University, missed the 2020 Tokyo Games despite winning the 100-meter trials due to a positive test for THC, the active ingredient in marijuana. Now, at 24, she is set to make her Olympic Games debut in Paris, where she is considered a favorite contender for the gold medal in the 100-meter race.
