Sha'Carri Richardson said she was always a champion. In her debut at track and field's World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary on Monday, she took home the 100-meter gold.
The blazing 10.65-second run came all the way from the outside in lane 9. The time was a world championship record and personal best for the 23-year-old. The world record is 10.49 from Florence Griffith-Joyner, and Richardson is now tied for the title of fifth-fastest woman over 100 meters in history.
It was an unprecedented performance, as no one has ever won the title after making a final based on time instead of auto-qualifying. The 23-year-old is also the first American 100-meter world champion in six years. Before Richardson, the late Tori Bowie was the last U.S. sprinter to bring home the 100-meter gold from worlds in 2017.
Richardson looked absolutely stunned after she crossed the line, covering her mouth as she looked at the time and sending a kiss to the sky. A hard-fought goal was realized for the former LSU standout, and it demanded the poise of a seasoned veteran to execute.
After Richardson led the field as the fastest qualifier in 10.92 seconds on Sunday, it wasn't a sure bet that she would even make the final. Just an hour before claiming the world title, she ran 10.84 in her semi-final heat after an uncharacteristic start and some misplaced lateral steps. But she gathered herself for a strong finish to come in third behind Jamaica's Shericka Jackson and Marie Jose Ta Lou of the Ivory Coast.
With the top two finishers taking the auto-qualifying spots in her heat, the Texan had to wait for the next heat to finish to learn if her time was fast enough. After learning that she made the final, she was forced the clear the previous race out of her mind — a task likely easier said than done.
From being stripped of her national title and Tokyo Olympic berth in 2021 after testing positive for marijuana to failing to make the semis at 2022 US Championships before worlds, Richardson battled for this moment. Early in the season, she said she found peace on the track. Three months later, that revelation continued to pay off.
"I'm not worried about the world anymore. I've seen the world be my friend, I've seen the world turn on me. At the end of the day, I've always been with me. God has always been with me. So being on this scale now, it's my time," she said after the qualifying race Sunday. "It's always been my time, but now it's my time to actually do it for myself, and the people that felt like me, and the people that look like me, and the people that know the truth about themselves as well. I represent those people."
Placement in the far line during the final meant Richardson had to run without any proximity to the favorites, outside the heat of competition in the middle of the track. Jamaican legend Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce was seeded in lane 5, with Jackson right next to her. But it didn't matter. Richardson was already gone as Jackson and Fraser-Pryce raced to the finish in 10.72 seconds and 10.77 seconds, respectively.
The Jamaican and American rivalry is alive and well in the Women's 100. The top three finishers haven't always gotten along over the years, but it was nothing but respect after the final as they posed for photos and embraced one another after the race.
When Richardson won the U.S. Outdoor title in the 100 meters with a world-leading 10.71 this summer, it was Jackson that bested the time. She won the Jamaican Championships in 10.65, and now she's the world silver medalist. Fraser-Pryce's bronze finish made her the most decorated Jamaican athlete at world's, surpassing Usain Bolt.
