Team USA track and field athletes stunned everyone at the 2024 Paris Olympics. But two names stood out. Sha’Carri Richardson and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone. The former discussed the 400m hurdles champion in a new interview and showed immense appreciation for her craft. What exactly did Richardson say?

Sha’Carri Richardson was asked by the reporter, “You look so good while you’re being the best, and we applaud that. What current Olympian are you in awe of right now?”

Her response was: “If I had to pick any, any Olympian in all honesty. I will honestly, honestly say Sydney [McLaughlin-Levrone]. My favorite thing about her is her faith,” Richardson told REFINERY29 on August 12, 2024.

Notably, McLaughlin-Levrone credited her faith after achieving the status of the first woman to become a two-time Olympic champion in the women’s 400-meter hurdles. She praised god and saw her victory as his miracle. She also has the habit of praying before every race with her coach, trainer, and husband, and this is something she believes in with her whole heart. 

No doubt, Richardson further said, “Faith is something that I admire even in myself and continue to grow in. I admire her resilience, determination, and faith in everything that she believes is something that drives her no matter what.”

But these praises are not just one-sided. Previously, McLaughlin-Levrone too spoke about Richarson when the latter received criticism. There was a track and field fanbase that had a problem with Richardson being portrayed as the face of the sport; especially when there exist so many star athletes with solid achievements. That’s when McLaughlin-Levron stated, “No reason to hate Sha’Carri, she’s her own person.”

In fact, McLaughlin-Levrone, renowned for her humility, also shared her wish to pass on a piece of her ‘crown’ to Richardson that she received from her sister-in-law.

 “Sha’Carri, I know there were some issues going on, but she still went out there and did her thing,” the athlete showed her support for Richardson. At the same time, she too had a great Paris Olympics run. McLaughlin-Levrone set off a buzz when she secured an Olympic 400-meter hurdle gold medal for the second time. 

Reflecting on her victory, she expressed excitement and disbelief: “I felt so strong in the backend of the race but the moment I crossed the finish line, I couldn’t believe it.” She also became the first woman to defend an Olympic 400mH title successfully. On top of that victory, she annihilated her own 400m world record with a staggering 50.37s for gold, the sixth time this stunning world record has been achieved in this event. But this time, she did not want to take all the credit, so she expressed her gratitude to USA teammates besides Sha’Carri Richardson.

She said in the interview with Pulse Sports, “I would give a piece of that to Gabby Thomas in the 200m. Tara Davis (Olympic long jump champion) for sure.”

She even called Elle St. Pierre a beast in track and field and shared how she loves to watch her run at an excellent speed. This 25-year-old champion could not stop praising another teammate, Jasmine Moore. Her support for all athletes made her a professional and personal champion, which Sha’Carri Richardson has noticed. Richardson believes that what truly keeps Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone going is her determination, resilience, dedication, and faith. The same goes for the 24-year-old.

An incident that affected Sha’Carri Richardson’s confidence in Paris…

The U.S. women narrowly won the Olympic 4×100 relay on Thursday. Sha’Carri Richardson eventually overtook a German runner in the closing meters to help the Americans win their heat and progress to the final for the gold medal race. To the women’s disappointment, Richardson reached the first exchange only four feet behind Gabby Thomas (who had nearly misconnected on the exchange with Twanisha Terry earlier). Then, Richardson ended her performance with a speed of 10.87, making her second. When she arrived at the final, Richardson was the heavy favorite.

She had a clocking of 10.71 at the U.S. Olympic Trials, which is this year’s fastest time in the world. Reflecting on her journey, she said in an interview with NBC Philadelphia, “I’m better, I’m stronger, I’m wiser” with a lot of confidence. The success tasted better, as she had a tough time during the training sessions.

In a video clip posted by TxT Tracktime on YouTube, viewers saw how Sha’Carri and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce could not access the warm-up area and how the security asked them to use another gate to enter. As per the information available, it happened because they both missed the shuttle bus, which was there to bring all athletes to the check-in areas.

It was a mishap that somehow broke their confidence and made them dissatisfied. It took place because of the changing rules, which were not known by either of the athletes.

Shelly even said that many athletes were using that same gate to enter, but in their case, things changed. However, it eventually cleared up, and Richardson got the chance to make it to the semi-finals. Unfortunately, Shelly had to step back because of injuries.