Sha’Carri Richardson set the tone for her own comeback story a year ago when she won the 100-meter U.S. title, then the world championship, and brashly proclaimed: “I’m not back, I’m better.” Now, with a trip to her first Olympics approaching, come new questions: Is she still better than a field of the fastest women on the planet? And can she handle the pressure that is unique to the Olympics? The 24-year-old favorite in the Olympic 100 meters has been open and honest about her quest to become a more appreciative, mindful version of the person whose positive marijuana test at the 2021 U.S. Olympic trials was her unfortunate introduction to a world that knew little about her. But in the three years that have
encompassed both her stunning fall and her inspiring comeback, she has given few details of what happened. She has dropped clues about the death of her biological mother and the bout with depression following that tragedy.
It has also made her more than a mere celebrity sprinter. She is a young, famous, Black woman whose suspension evoked arguments about race, drugs, anti-doping rules and an Olympic ecosphere that is still largely run (and reported on) by older, white men.
“It’s not a goal of mine to be known,” Richardson said. “But I definitely don’t want to be known for one thing. No one does. It’s important for me to be the best person I can be in all that matters to me, like family, community and the work that I do.”How Richardson communicates with the media
That insight came out of the two questions Richardson agreed to answer from The Associated Press as part of her sponsorship with Powerade. Many of her interviews over the past year or more have come with those sort of brand-placement trade-offs attached.
