Sha’Carri Richardson Torches Field After Stumbling At Start At Olympic Trials

Getty Image / Steph Chambers

Sha’Carri Richardson should’ve been a household name after the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. But, a failed drug test for cannabis kept the track star out of the Olympics that summer.

Not to worry. Richardson has come back with a vengeance, and looked absolutely unstoppable in Friday’s Olympic Trials despite a terrible start, possibly due to her shoelaces being untied.

Richardson took the track for the first round of heats at the 2024 Team USA Track and Field Olympic Trials in Eugene Oregon. She won her heat, which was expected. But, it was how she won her heat that was truly incredible. Take a look.

That is as bad of a start as you will see from a sprinter of that caliber. It simply didn’t matter. She blazed her way to a 10.88, despite a horrible start.

Watch the video again, and you can tell that she had an untied shoelace! That could’ve caused the poor start, for sure.

Richardson, whose personal best in the 100m is 10.65, was the fastest woman in the world last year, winning the gold at the World Championship with that 10.65 run.

Sha’Carri Richardson will likely also try to run the 200m in Paris this summer. Obviously, she must continue to run well in both events to qualify. She will almost certainly be on the 4×100 relay team, as well.

This time around, it seems like her story may not be one of heartbreak and embarrassment. Rather, she’s on  track to be one of the breakout stars at the Olympics.