15 seconds is all it took. Sha’Carri Richardson was the fan favorite, but Julien Alfred did everything better. The moment Alfred heard the gun go off, she was off like a train. Everyone indeed wanted Sha’Carri to grab the win this year. She has been on everyone’s radar after grabbing a win back in the US championships in 2023. However, Alfred wrapped up the 100 meters in 10.72 and got the gold, while She Carri clocked in at 10.87 and managed to secure the silver.

And on the August 4th episode of Night Cap, we got former Broncos star Shannon Sharpe talking about all that went wrong for Richardson. “You are not going to consistently run down these men and women if you get left in the blocks. They’re just too talented,” Sharpe mentioned. This ain’t no college-level or high-school-level run. One has to understand that the stakes are much higher here. And one thing that will always differentiate an average runner from a pro one is their start. Just like Sharpe puts it, “The reason why Bolt got so good, became great, is because he worked on that start.” Sharpe also goes on to explain where Richardson went wrong. “She’s giving up too much ground in the beginning of the race,” he notes. While it is true that at the top end, no one can catch Richardson. She probably has the best top end among all the other women. However, if she falls back on her start, as Sharpe puts it, “she can’t chase these women down consistently.”

The loss didn’t only cost Richardson a gold medal. She also lost around $130,000. Back on August 1st, Shannon Sharpe and Chad ‘OCHOCINCO’ Johnson promised to pay out $50K to select Olympians who grabbed gold. The USA had also promised to give a payout of $37,500 to every athlete who won a gold for the country. Finally, World Athletics had also promised $50K for winning gold in track and field events. However, all was not lost for Team US. Richardson, and Melissa Jefferson became the first American Duo to grab medals. The last time this happened was when Gail Devers grabbed a gold and Gwen Torrence grabbed a bronze during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. Also, Team US hasn’t had a 100m winner since 1996. But let’s better shift our focus to the new queen.

Sprint champ from St Lucia

Lost her father when she was 12 and then lost her aunt while she was competing for the Youth Olympic Games back in 2018. Still, she came back and grabbed the gold at Paris 2024. Saint Lucia never had an athlete on the podium. With a 10.72 clock in, Julien Alfred grabbed the gold and also the first-ever Olympic win for her country. Edrick Floreal was the man who took Alfred under his wings. Floreal has also coached greats like Euro champ Dina Asher-Smith and Rhasidat Adeleke, 400m medal hope.

While Richardson’s loss did shock the fans, you cannot disagree that Alfred went up there and managed to win the hearts of more than 180k people.