Former sprinters Justin Gatlin and Rodney Green recently showed their support for American 100m World Champion Sha’Carri Richardson, stating that fans have not yet witnessed her full potential. Richardson secured two medals at this year’s Paris Olympics.
After being disqualified from the Tokyo Olympics for a positive cannabis test, Richardson made her Olympic debut this year in Paris. As the reigning World Champion in the 100m, she was seen as a strong contender for gold. Ultimately, she placed second with a time of 10.87 seconds, behind St. Lucia’s Julien Alfred, who won gold at 10.72 seconds. However, Richardson significantly contributed to the USA’s women’s 4x100m relay win, receiving the baton in third place and surpassing the French team to clinch the gold medal.
Before wrapping up her 2024 season, the 24-year-old encountered a significant challenge at the Diamond League finals in Brussels, where she recorded her slowest race and finished last. She also withdrew from the 200-meter event at the competition.
Despite a mixed season marked by two major defeats, Justin Gatlin expressed faith in Sha’Carri Richardson’s potential to bounce back against Julien Alfred in upcoming races. Rodney Green echoed this sentiment, emphasizing that Richardson has previously clocked times faster than Alfred’s gold-winning performance at the Paris Games.
“With a coach like Flo (Edrick Floreal, Alfred’s coach), who hates to lose, and the Claremont camp at Star Athletics featuring both the silver medalist (Richardson) and bronze medalist (Melissa Jefferson) training together, they now have a chance to capitalize on the opportunities missed this season,” Gatlin remarked on the Ready Set Go podcast.
“I believe we haven’t seen Sha’Carri Richardson’s full potential yet. Even though Julien Alfred ran 10.72, Sha’Carri has run faster times before, whether due to slowing down or waving her hands,” Green added.
Richardson noted her early success as a 200-meter runner in middle school, often beating competitors by substantial margins, which led her to explore the 100-meter event in high school. “I was dominating the 200, and that made me think maybe this was my calling,” she said.
Currently, Richardson holds two world championship titles and a bronze medal in the 200-meter event.
