Sha’Carri Richardson came, saw, and achieved her feat today in Hayward Field, Oregon. On her way to redemption, the 24-year-old had to overcome all the stigmatization she had been facing in the post-Tokyo Olympics period. She had to prove all the conservative mindsets wrong that were not ready to accept her in her persona that often finds comparison with Florence Griffith-Joyner. Sha’Carri Richardson has jumped a great length today, proving herself way above all these things. Today, when everyone expected her to claim a piece of bread, Sha’Carri won the entire bakery. 

In earning her Paris Olympics qualification in the 100m, she put a world-leading 10.71 seconds (+0.8 seconds). Expectedly, the host came to her with a bag of questions in post-match conversations. Well, Sha’Carri Richardson did her best to put her emotions into words. The 24-year-old started with, “I feel honored. I feel… everything, every chapter I’ve been through in my life, designed and prepared me for this moment.” The exudation of satisfaction could have remained unfinished if Sha’Carri Richardson had not brought the name of the French capital into the discussion. 

While she acknowledged her mates in arms in shaping her path (coincidentally her practice mates availed their qualifications as well) in these years, Sha’Carri headlined the entire part by saying, “I can not wait to go to Paris and represent”. In the meantime, Sha’Carri Richardson’s family was watching her from a distance, sitting at the blocks. The perfect end to today’s story could be Sha’Carri Richardson hugging her grandma, Betty Harp, after winning the qualification. After all, they have seen it all, from the beginning to this day. 

Well, being the emotional champion, the world champion athlete could not miss the moment as she promptly showed up in the blocks, hugging teary-eyed Betty, whom she calls Big Mama. The Big Mama found her world in her arms while aunt Shayaria Richardson was removing her droplets of tears standing behind. Later, Sha’Carri Richardson went unfiltered while sharing one or two words for feeling emotional at the moment. 

While cherishing her family’s presence at the Hayward Field, she said, “My family being here means everything. My family shows where I come from and where I’m going and continue to grow. So I can grow with them as well.” Yet this can come as one of the chapters in her story of coming over a lion’s share of criticisms or a fateful past. And every time in that story of resilience, Sha’Carri thanked her loved ones, especially the Big Mama. 

Sha’Carri Richardson finds her Big Mama in her journey to the light 

Just three years ago, when Sha’Carri Richardson found everything under her feet after topping the 100m dash in the Tokyo Olympics trials, it took a few hours to lose everything. The USADA claimed her guilty of consuming banned ma*****a and steadfastly handed her a prohibiting order from stepping into the Tokyo Olympics. Thus the flamboyance personified had to see her dream of Olympic participation crumbling in front of her eyes. At that moment, the ripple effect remained more vicious as people ridiculed her for forgetting the primary rule to make the nomination to such a contest. 

But her sympathizers knew that Sha’Carri Richardson had to consume ma*****a to forget her mother’s untimely demise. The situation had been so fragile for her that she got to know about her mother’s death from a reporter. Since that rough patch, both Betty Harp and Shayaria Richardson have become home for her. In this 3-year timeline, Sha’Carri Richardson has won many laurels, but every time she has remained humble to those ladies. 

This year, in Prefontaine Classic, SCR received her peace defeating her Jamaican nemesis Elaine Thompson-Herah in the 100m event. But the scene completed when she rushed to her grandma, waiting at the stand, and presented her with the prize bouquet. It is all about celebrating the bonding while winning the stumbles on the track. Today, the Hayward Field has witnessed it again.