Sha'Carri Richardson Sprints To Victory Over Reigning Olympic Gold Medalist

Can we call it a comeback? Sha’Carri Richardson defeated reigning Olympic gold medalist Elaine Thompson-Herah in the 100m race at the World Athletics Continental Tour silver meet in Lucerne, Switzerland on Tuesday.

This is Richardson’s first win in three attempts against Jamaica’s Thompson-Herah, who hold records in both the 100m and 200m races.

Clocking in at 11.29 seconds, 22-year-old Richardson defeated the Jamaican track star by just one-hundredth of a second, claiming victory in the seven-person race.

Richardson’s style and brazenness captured headlines last year when she dominated at the U.S. Olympic trials in Eugene, Oregon. Her return to Eugene this year proved to be more challenging, as she failed to advance to the World Championships in both the 100m and 200m races.

Between those two meets, Richardson endured both professional and personal setbacks. Richardson missed last summer’s Tokyo Olympics after she tested positive for marijuana and was banned from the games. She revealed she was overcoming the loss of her biological mother, who passed away a week before the U.S. Olympic trials began.

After other track losses— and some spats on social media— Richardson has been under more intense scrutiny. When she didn’t advance to the World Championships this June, she stated “[o]verseas I will definitely bring some Texas drip over the water.”

She fulfilled that promise in Lucerne.

The U.S. track star has little time to celebrate her Tuesday victory, however. Richardson is scheduled to be back to the races in Brussels on Friday for the Diamond League meet, where she’ll face off against the 100m world champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and 200m world gold medal winner Shericka Jackson.

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