Richardson returned to the trials after years of ups and downs, of growth, of opportunities missed, missed and taken. She returned already a world champion. She came back smiling and composed, and left with the fastest ticket in the world to the Paris Olympics. She had matured.
Three years after failing to qualify for the Olympics after testing positive for marijuana, Richardson has qualified again. She won the 100 meters on Saturday night at Hayward Field in a blazing time of 10.71 seconds, beating runner-up Melissa Jefferson, the 2022 U.S. national champion, and 0.18 seconds ahead of Towanisha Terry. Richardson, Jefferson and Terry train together under coach Dennis Mitchell and will now travel to Paris together.
Once she crossed the finish line, Richardson sprinted half the track. She dropped to her knees and cried. Then she stood and hugged Terry and Jefferson. She knew the struggles and triumphs of the past three years had led her to this point.
“Everything that I've been through, I've been through to be in this moment,” Richardson said, “so there's nothing that I've been through that I haven't been through to be sitting in front of you.”
On the second night of qualifying, Ryan Crowther further cemented his status as the greatest shot putter of all time with his seventh national title, and Noah Lyles showed determination in his first 100m appearance, but when Richardson stepped on the track, it was hers.
As he walked to the starting line for the final, Richardson patted his chest and told himself, “The hard work pays off.” He settled into the starting block and went through his usual routine: crossing his face, blowing a kiss, looking up to the sky. After a shaky start in qualifying, he sprinted off the starting block alongside the others, which meant the race was over. Richardson used his world-best top speed to build a comfortable lead.
Richardson is often seen screaming and strutting after victories, and on Saturday night she was fighting back tears as she crossed the finish line.
“This time, I still felt confident and excited like I always do,” Richardson said, “but more than anything, I felt a surge of joy.”
Though the 24-year-old Richardson stresses she has moved on from the past, reminders are inevitable. When the stadium announcer introduced her as the “reigning world champion” during Saturday's semifinals, Richardson couldn't help but smile. In lane nine, Javian Oliver was introduced as the 2021 U.S. Trials champion. Richardson's performance was officially cancelled after she tested positive. She called her win a “full circle moment.”
Even before the final, Richardson had shown she was in a gear that no other American sprinter could match. In Friday's opening race, Richardson was last off the starting line. But she passed everyone else, finishing in 10.88 seconds, the fastest time of any heat and the fastest time of any woman all year. In the semifinal, despite another disappointing start, she ran the fastest time, throwing her arms up as the clock read 10.86 seconds.
Richardson had been selected for the U.S. Olympic team before, but had never been an Olympian. On the eve of the 2021 trials, a reporter told Richardson that his biological mother had died. Richardson said he had used marijuana to deal with the emotional effects. Though attitudes in the U.S. are changing, marijuana remains a banned substance under World Anti-Doping Agency rules. After testing positive for drugs after his victory, he was suspended and could not compete in the Tokyo Olympics.
The confusion continued. In his first race since returning, Richardson finished last on national television during a commercial break in which he appeared. At the 2022 U.S. Championships, Richardson inexplicably recorded his slowest time, failed to get out of the first round and berated reporters in the mixed zone.
Having reached rock bottom in her young career, Richardson refocused and matured. She says she came to “understand myself better.” She developed “a deep love and deep care for the talent that I was given.” Rather than resenting critics, she accepted “a responsibility to the people who believed in me and supported me.” She nurtured her mind and her body.
“All of these things have helped me grow and will continue to help me continue to grow as the young woman God has given me and blessed me to be,” Richardson said.
It began to surface last summer, when she won the national title in 2023, where she declared, “I'm not coming back. I'm just getting better.” In Budapest, she overcame a slow start in the semifinals to compete in lane 9 at the world championships and ultimately win, beating Jamaican rivals Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Elaine Thompson-Heller in a personal best of 10.65 seconds.
She'll once again compete against the best athletes in the world, but this time with two teammates and on a stage she's never stepped foot on before. When Jefferson watched Richardson win the 2021 Trials Final, she told herself she'd make the next Olympic team. She won in 2022 but just missed qualifying for the 2023 World Championships.
“I told myself right then and there that this would be the last team in my career that I wouldn't be selected for Team USA,” Jefferson said.
Miss convinced Jefferson to switch coaches to Mitchell and train with Terry and Richardson. “They're like my sisters,” Jefferson said. The three train with love and sometimes tough love. They're not afraid to give each other harsh criticism or encouragement.
“We rely on each other and depend on each other,” Terry said. “We pass that on to others, whether they want to hear it or not.”
On Saturday night, their work paid off.
“We didn't tell the world,” Richardson said. “The world already knew.”
Lyles will try to follow Richardson into the megawatt 100-meter championship Sunday night. He made his Trials debut in the first round of the 100 and showed off an improved start that will make him a threat to win three gold medals in Paris. Lyles led after 30 meters, but slowed with 40 meters to go and crossed the line with ease, still winning in 9.92.
“I'd say that was my best run in the 100 meters, hands down, in the opening race,” Lyles said. “Last year at World Championships I was a little bit faster, but not where I wanted to be. I was still figuring it out. This year I feel like I have it all. I'm executing when I want to, and it's coming.”
Lyles declared Sunday he would run under 9.8 seconds, a personal best and the fastest time in the world this year. He ran with his usual flair. His mother was sitting in the stands next to Snoop Dogg. Lyles entered the stadium carrying a silver briefcase that contained the pearls woven into his braids and his immaculate uniform that matched them.
“There's a joy to be here,” Lyles said, “and that's the energy I try to create.”
Crowther remained the favorite to win a third consecutive gold medal. He was unable to repeat his world record feat from three years ago when he first competed in the trials, but still won with a throw of 22.84 meters (74 feet, 11.5 inches). Crowther's current silver medalist, Joe Kovacs, an unfortunate contemporary of Crowther's, again finished second to him.
Crowther, who took an hour-long victory lap after a victory that was as satisfying as her world-record throw, had minor elbow surgery this spring and made some technical adjustments to perform despite the pain.
“It's a breath of relief and I proved to myself that I can still do it,” Crowther said. “At 31 it's not the end of my career but injuries are constant and can I get that feeling back? I proved to myself that if you just keep moving forward there are going to be a lot of tough days along the way. Progress is never linear. I just kept moving forward and kept going and got through it. I've bought myself another six weeks to get even better.”
In the 1,500-meter semifinals, crowd favorite and unsponsored 29-year-old Eric Holt finished last in the heats and didn't make it to the finals. Holt made a tactical error by running too far forward in the slow-paced heats. But the Olympic trials aren't over yet. He said he'll run the 800 meters.
“I think I'm the type of runner that if I can just make one move I'll be fine,” Holt said, “And I made 50 moves and I messed up. It's all about execution. I ran a stupid race. I didn't deserve to not qualify. Oh well. I'm just trying to wow the world in the events that I think I'm good at.”
