'I'm not back, I'm better': Sha'Carri Richardson puts world on notice with 100 meter title

EUGENE, Ore. — Sha’Carri Richardson made an emphatic statement Friday night at the USA Track and Field championships, flying to a win in the women’s 100 at Hayward Field with a 10.82, finishing strong despite a slow start.

The win capped an impressive 30 hours for the 23-year-old Richardson, who ran a personal best — and then-world leading, for just about 24 hours — 10.71 in the first round, and easily won her semi earlier Friday evening with a time of 10.75 seconds. With the win, Richardson qualifies for the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, which will be held Aug. 19-27. She is seeking her first world title.

After being introduced to the crowd, Richardson dramatically shed her bright orange wig, tossing it to the track and revealing long braids as the crowd “oohed.” The braids were shaped into a star just over her right ear, a reminder to everyone of her place in the sport.

After crossing the finish line, Richardson took a victory lap with a fierce glare across her face. But she smiled when she climbed into the stands to hug her family, and as she posed for photos with fans. Eventually she made her way to NBC’s Lewis Johnson, telling him, “the thing I remember the most, I stood here with you (in 2021) … now I’m standing here with you again and I’m ready, mentally, physically and emotionally. And I’m here to stay.

“I’m not back, I’m better.”

Brittany Brown finished second (10.90) and Tamari Davis took third (10.99) to make Team USA.

Just four years ago, Richardson burst onto the track and field scene after running a 10.75 at the 2019 NCAA championships. Two years later she dazzled spectators at the 2021 Olympic trials, winning the 100 and putting her charismatic, bombastic personality on center stage. Fans were excited to see what the 5-foot-1 dynamo would do in Tokyo.

But she never made it overseas, suspended for one month after testing positive for marijuana. That suspension drew criticism for both Richardson and the sport’s draconian recreational drug rules.

All eyes were again on her last summer at the national championships, but she bombed out of the first round, running just an 11.31, eliminating her from competition.

It’s been a stellar season so far for Richardson, who is obviously in top form. In April she ran a wind-aided 10.57 at the Miramar Invitational in Florida, the fourth-fastest all-conditions time ever recorded; the next month in Doha, Qatar, she tallied her first Diamond League win.

In Doha she told NBC Sports, “I’m happy that I’m here, healthy, but more important, happy. I found my peace back on the track, and I’m not letting anything or anybody take that anymore.”

Richardson did not go through the mixed zone and declined to speak with media both Thursday and Friday. USATF officials told reporters she planned to talk only Sunday, the final day of the meet. She is also entered in the 200, with prelims scheduled for Saturday evening.

She spent Friday tweeting and retweeting messages blasting USATF and its streaming service, which had buffering problems all meet, forcing fans to miss many events.

Elsewhere in the women’s 100, Mia Brahe-Pedersen, a rising high school senior in Lake Oswego, Oregon, finished seventh at 11.08.

In the men’s 100, Cravont Charleston narrowly edged Christian Coleman, 9.95 to 9.96, to take the title. Noah Lyles, one of the most recognizable faces in the sport, finished third in 10 seconds flat, saying afterward that the hardest part is making Team USA. Because he did that, he feels good about his chances in Budapest.

Lyles’ third place finish was impressive considering he’s just a couple weeks removed from catching COVID (for the second time). Lyles, who has asthma, said he caught the virus after the New York Grand Prix, where he won the 200 on June 24. He didn’t train the two weeks between meets.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Sha'Carri Richardson wins 100 at USA Track and Field championships