Team USA has always been a powerhouse when it comes to the track. The representatives under the Star-Spangled Banner have always delivered in continental meets all the way to the Olympics. Legends have come and gone but there is one thing for certain — new stars arise every generation and the poster child of this era’s women’s track team is none other than Sha’Carri Richardson. From Dallas all the way to Paris, let’s follow her triumphant laps.

Even dreams are bigger in Texas

There is not much known about her immediate family as she was raised by Betty Harp and Shayaria, her grandmother and aunt. The most that the world knows about her mother is that she died just a week prior to Sha’Carri’s win at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Track and Field trials.

She was born on March 25,2000 and grew up dominating meets in Dallas, Texas. The young star’s run with Carter High School gave her the opportunity to win the Amateur Athletic Union Junior Olympics Championship in the 100-meter dash. Moreover, her teen years were also when she brought home the bronze medal in the USATF 200 meters. All of this earned her a spot in the 2017 Team USA squad for Pan-American U20 Championships. Alongside Tara Davis, Gabrielle Cunningham, and Rebekah Smith, she won gold in the 4x100 relay.

Her dreams only grew from there as she aspired to run in the collegiate level and pursue this endeavor. Sha’Carri was the top-ranked sprint recruit in all of the nation back in 2018 and got a lot of offers. Eventually, she made a decision and it made perfect sense.

Passing batons in Baton Rouge

LSU was Sha’Carri’s pick for where she wanted to go to college. She ended up enrolling there in the fall of 2018 and her impact was immediately felt by their track and field program. The 2019 NCAA Division I Indoor Championships saw her become a finalist in the 60-meter dash. After not winning much in her first year, she vowed to turn it up in 2019.

Her tunnel vision was evident throughout the training sessions and extra work that she was putting in throughout the fall and winter. The challenge was the big 2019 NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships. Every second of her hard work paid off as she won the 100-meter by breaking 42-year U20 record through an insane time of 10.75 seconds.

Sha’Carri also placed in other events throughout this competition. The LSU track star finished second in the 200-meter. Despite settling for a runner-up finish, she still shattered Allyson Felix’s 2004 Athens Olympics record by registering 22.17 seconds. Her 4x100 team also notched a second place finish.

Nike, Beats by Dre, and Apple Music were invested to see Sha’Carri grow and sponsored her. She is now valued somewhere between $1 to $5 million in 2024. This prompted her to make a big decision entering 2020 which would forever alter her professional career.

Rising above adversity

Her big call was to forego college and head straight to becoming a professional sprinter. However, she experiences a big roadblock which set her back quite a bit. The superstar had already qualified at 2020 US Olympic Trials by finishing first in thw 100-meter with a time of 10.77 seconds but the big issue came when they tested her for drug use. She was suspended for a month and had to undergo counseling with the USDA after her urine sample had THC metabolites in them.

This decision to use marijuana due to the pressure of the qualifiers led her to missing the 2020 Tokyo Olympics despite her efforts. There was nothing she could do but just be great in the lead up to the next big thing — Paris.

Lighting the track ablaze

Sha’Carri had a dominant run in a span of three years to prove that she was worthy of a spot on Team USA’s Olympic squad. Her Miramar Invitational run with 10.57 seconds saw her become the fourth-fastest woman in to dominate the 100-meter. She also went ham in the Diamond League by clocking in 10.76 seconds in the 100-meter which set a new meet record.

This insane display of dominance continued in 2023. She became the national champion for the 100 meters. This automatic bid to the World Athletics Championships was not wasted as she did not lift her foot off the gas pedal. In Budapest, she got gold in the 100-meter and helped Team USA notch another first place finish in the 4x100-meter relay. Sha’Carri may have fallen short in the 200-meter but she still took home bronze.

There was clearly a switch that clicked inside her head which led to all of these triumphs and it never switched off as the 2024 meets neared. She won the Prefontaine Classic and and entered the 2024 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships with a lot of confidence. Sha’Carri proved that she was the queen of the 100-meter by wining the event yet again. The bane of her career, the 200-meter dash,  was still a big problem as she only ended up fourth and failed to qualify.

Team USA called her up for the Paris Olympics and was the center piece of their 4x100 meter team while also competing in the 100-meter. She along with Twanisha Terry, Gabby Thomas, and Melissa Jefferson won the 4x100 as Sha’Carri delivered a staredown when she crossed the finish line. As for the latter, Julien Alfred got the better of her as she had to settle for second.

There are a lot more meters left in what could be a very dominant career for Sha’Carri.