Sha’Carri Richardson was the odds-on favorite to win the 100m gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, but Julien Alfred beat the American in 10.72 seconds. She had to settle for a silver medal. Eager to recover, she went into the Diamond League meet in Zurich with one goal in mind: gold.
In a reversal of the Olympic final, Richardson won gold (10.84 seconds), while Alfred finished second (10.88 seconds). So hopes were high for SCR in Brussels, but the outcome would leave any fan in tears. She finished in 11.23 seconds, the slowest 100-meter time she’s run this year. While she finished ninth in the race, Alfred won again.
That was indeed a very tough moment for Richardson. A slow start—something that the athlete has been working on for a while—ruined her chances of a better outcome.
However, just weeks later, she has found support. Sha’Carri Richardson received some uplifting words from Gail Devers, a three-time Olympic gold medalist, who attended the Athlos event in New York on September 26. Even though Richardson wasn’t the part of race, she was still very much in the spotlight.
Devers stood up for her, saying, “Sha’Carri came in second, so we’re looking forward and I think everything happens for a reason. And I say the reason she didn’t get it is that it’s supposed to come back in American soil in 2028 so it will be 32 years, and who knows who’s gonna be there. I think it doesn’t come easy, and it’s a target on your back once you get there. But it’s just about trusting and believing.”
The last American woman to win an Olympic gold in the 100 meters was Gail Devers at the 1996 Atlanta Games. She also won it in Barcelona (1992). So, if Sha’Carri Richardson can claim victory in the 100m at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, it will mark 32 years since an American woman last brought home the gold in this event.
When the host further asked, “Were you impressed with her performance?” Gail Devers fired back with a powerful response, “Oh absolutely, I’m always impressed with her everybody has a story and her story is one of resilience. When the chips are down, she finds a way to come back. She has support, and that’s what this meet is about- women bonding together, supporting each other. To be there for each other and to make it happen.”
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