Sports

Sha’Carri Richardson Briefly Denied Access To Warm-Up Track By Ludicrous Rule Ahead Of Gold Medal Race

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Sha'Carri Richardson Warm-Up Olympics Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce
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Sha’Carri Richardson and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce were denied access to the warm-up area through the main gate on Saturday ahead of the 100-meter semifinals and finals at the Olympics. It was ludicrous.

The good news is that the mixup didn’t take long to resolve.

Track and field competition got underway in Paris on Friday. Richardson and Fraser-Pryce cruised through qualifying with ease and secured a place in the next round without any stress.

Team USA’s superstar sprinter is expected to win a gold medal in the 100 after failing to make the team in the 200. Jamaica’s 37-year-old legend ran the second-fastest time behind the American in the heats and will be nipping at her heels. (UPDATE: Fraser-Pryce withdrew before the race!)

Regardless of how things were to play out on Saturday evening, Fraser-Pryce and Richardson were both in an awkward situation together earlier in the afternoon.

Neither athlete chose to stay at their respective delegation’s Olympic Village. They are staying off-site, presumably at a hotel. Apparently that is a problem, for whatever reason…

Richardson and Fraser-Pryce pulled up to the track and field facility at the same time on Saturday. The entry gate to which they arrived was the same entry gate that they used on Friday.

However, the Olympic organizers switched up the protocol between qualifying and semis. Any athlete who is not staying in the Village must enter into the warm-up track through a separate entrance. The rule change was made at some point overnight, clearly without too much warning.

Neither sprinter was made aware of the new directive so they were both denied access upon arrival.

Richardson tried to stay off of her feet while fed up with all of the shenanigans.

Both athletes ultimately had to walk around the corner to a different gate, which was much further down, instead of walking through the exact same gate that they walked through about 24 hours prior.

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce was baffled by the alteration to ordinance.

As was Sha’Carri Richardson, who eventually got into the warm-up track after a lot of unnecessary confusion.

This entire saga obviously could’ve been much worse. The two medal contenders in the women’s 100m eventually got to where they needed to be, it just took some time and threw them off of their game.

Part of the blame here falls on the Olympics. There was no need for the rule change.

Part of the blame also falls on Team Jamaica and Team USA. Assuming that they knew of the gate switch, they should’ve had their athletes better prepared. And if they didn’t know of the adjustment, they should have!