Who is Sha’Carri Richardson? USA sprinter set to star on delayed Olympic debut: ‘I’m not back, I’m better’

Sha’Carri Richardson has captured the attention like few other track and field athletes have managed since Usain Bolt. Her talent cannot be argued with and the brilliant, albeit controversial, sprinter will have a point to prove at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Boasting 3.1 million Instagram followers, Richardson has a star power many athletes can only dream about, but this will be her first Games. The American sprinter has had a tumultuous journey to Paris, and has experienced more highs and lows in her 24 years than many will in an entire lifetime.

Richardson cuts a striking figure, with long nails, dyed hair and tattoos often believed to be inspired by the late Florence-Griffith Joyner, who still holds the world record in the women’s 100m, set at the US Olympic trials in 1988. Joyner was also known for her bold fashion, including wearing a one-legged running suit, and with long, decorative nails.

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Born in Dallas, Richardson was brought up by her grandmother and aunt, after being abandoned by her birth mother before she was a teenager. The athlete also tried to take her own life during high school and has spoken openly about mental health. A few years later, she won almost every race she entered, including the AAU Junior Olympics, and then competed for Louisiana State University. Richardson is also a member of the LGBT+ community, is openly bi and came out publicly in 2015.

She enjoyed a meteoric rise to the top, running 100m in 10.72 seconds ahead of Tokyo 2020, and looked set to compete for a medal, and a chance to deliver the United States’ first 100m women’s gold for more than 25 years.

However, in July 2021, Richardson accepted a one-month ban for testing positive for cannabis during the Olympic trials the month previously. “I just want to take responsibility for my actions, I know what I did, I know what I’m supposed to do, I’m allowed not to do and I still made that decision,” she said. “I’m not making an excuse or looking for any empathy in any case,” Richardson said in an interview with The Today Show at the time.

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In a post-race interview later, she added: “Last week, finding out my biological mother passed away, and still choosing to pursue my dreams. Still coming out here. Still making sure to make the family that I do still have on this earth proud.

“And the fact that nobody knows what I go through, everybody has struggles and I understand that, but y’all see me on this track, and y’all see the poker face I put on, but nobody but them and my coach know what I go through on a day to day basis.”

After being absent for most of 2022, the following year she was back competing with the best. At the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, Richardson triumphed in a field that contained Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Shericka Jackson. Not only did she win gold, but Richardson set a new championship record of 10.65 seconds.

The reigning world champion won the 100m in the Diamond League Prefontaine Classic in May, and while it wasn’t at her record speed, she recorded an impressive 10.83, with Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith coming in third.

Following her win at the USA Track and Field Championships last year, she uttered five simple words: “I’m not back, I’m better.”

If Richardson performs as she has proven time and time again she is capable of at the United States Olympic trials at the end of June, and carries that form into the Olympics, she will be one of the favourites for a medal at the Games.

If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.