EUGENE, Ore. — Sha’Carri Richardson, one of the United States’ biggest track and field stars, advanced to the women’s 100-meter final after finishing first in the semifinal at Hayward Field.
Richardson finished with a time of 10.86 in her semifinal heat. She will next compete at 7:50 p.m. PT, where the top three will make the U.S. Olympic team.
She’ll be joined in the final by Melissa Jefferson, Tamara Clark, Tamari Davis, Aleia Hobbs, Candace Hill, Twanisha Terry, Anavia Battle and Jenna Prandini.
Richardson ran a 10.88 in the opening round on Friday, the fastest of any of the 34 sprinters. Her time was especially impressive considering she stumbled out of the starting block.
“[I] definitely didn’t have the start that I have been training for this moment,” Richardson told NBC after her win Friday. “But still, not panicking, staying patient. And knowing that no matter what’s going on, to continue to run my race.”
Richardson, 24, is expected to compete for a gold medal at the Paris Games after she had one of the best years for a sprinter in American history. She ran a 10.65 at the world championships last August in Budapest, an event record. Florence Griffith-Joyner’s 35-year-old world record of 10.49 still stands.
Richardson also claimed gold in the 4x100m relay as well as bronze in the 200-meter at the world championships.
If she makes the Olympic team, it will be redemption for missing out on the 2020 Olympics. Richardson won the trials that year but was not allowed to compete in Tokyo after she tested positive for marijuana. She said on NBC’s “TODAY” show she ingested it after the death of her mother.
“I know what I did, I know what I’m supposed to do … and I still made that decision,” Richardson said at the time. “I’m not making an excuse or looking for empathy in my case. However, being in that position in my life, finding out something like that … dealing with the relationship I have with my mother, that definitely was a very heavy topic on me.”
Another gold medal favorite, Noah Lyles, will advance to the men’s 100-meter semifinals Sunday night. He won his first round heat Saturday with a time of 9.92.
Lyles — who will also run in the 200-meter next week — is seeking to become the “fastest man on Earth,” a title an American hasn’t held in 28 years.
“World records are meant to be broken,” he told NBC Philadelphia. “It’s just another goal to check off the list, and it’s always fun to go after the top.”