Sha’Carri Richardson’s sluggish start cost her the gold in the 100-meter final, making it a notable accomplishment that she medaled at all, given that she took .221 seconds to leave the blocks. Her reaction time was the slowest among the eight runners and nearly a full tenth of a second behind the eventual winner, Julien Alfred of Saint Lucia.
This required Richardson, who won gold at last year’s world championships, to spend the entire race catching up Alfred. She ultimately did pass six other sprinters but couldn’t overtake Alfred, who won the island nation’s first medal by a margin of .15 seconds—the largest gap in the event since 2008.
Slow Doesn’t Win the Race
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It was a disappointing result for the 24-year-old in her first Olympic Games, three years after missing out on Tokyo due to a positive test for THC. She spent the rest of the race trying to catch up to Alfred but ultimately regretted her poor start.
Richardson was the favorite to win the event after being banned from competing in the postponed Tokyo Olympics due to a suspension from Team USA.
At that time, she tested positive for THC, a compound in marijuana, and later revealed she used the drug to cope with the “emotional panic” after learning of her biological mother’s death.
She also had a poor start in the 100-meter semifinal in Paris, losing to Alfred and hinting at what was to come.
Richardson skipped the interviews in the mixed zone after winning silver, so she didn’t have the opportunity to discuss the disappointing outcome or explain what went wrong.
Although the silver medal was a significant achievement, it was a letdown for the United States since Richardson was expected to win gold and complete a redemption story that began with her disqualification from the Tokyo Games due to a positive THC test three years ago.
Not a Good Ending
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The Dallas native arrived in Paris aiming to build on her gold medal from the 2023 World Championships but ultimately fell short.
Just hours before the 100-meter final at the 2024 Games, two-time Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica withdrew from the event before the semifinals.
The 37-year-old, who won in this event in 2008 and 2012, was set to compete in the same heat as Richardson and Alfred.
She had previously announced that Paris would be her last Olympics but did not provide an immediate explanation for her withdrawal.
It was later reported that Fraser-Pryce, who will turn 38 later this year, withdrew due to a hamstring injury. According to reports, the sprinter sustained the injury during her warm-up before Saturday’s semifinal.
