Story at a glance
- American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson was left off of the USA Track and Field roster and will miss a trip to Tokyo following a failed drug test and subsequent suspension.
- The 21-year-old track star’s one-month suspension left a narrow window for her to compete as a member of a 4×1 relay team.
- But Richardson was left off Team USA’s roster released Tuesday.
American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson was left off of the USA Track and Field roster and will miss a trip to Tokyo following a failed drug test and subsequent suspension.
Richardson’s 10.86-second, 100-meter victory at the Olympic Trials in Eugene, Ore., last month was automatically nullified after she tested positive for marijuana. The 21-year-old track star’s one month suspension left a narrow window for her to compete as a member of a 4×1 relay team. But Richardson was left off Team USA’s roster released Tuesday.
“We are incredibly sympathetic toward Sha’Carri Richardson’s extenuating circumstances and strongly applaud her accountability – and will offer her our continued support both on and off the track,” USA Track & Field (USATF) said in a written statement, according to Reuters.
“So while our heartfelt understanding lies with Sha’Carri, we must also maintain fairness for all of the athletes who attempted to realize their dreams by securing a place on the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Team,” the statement continued.
The available relay spots were ultimately awarded to sixth- and seventh-place finishers whose position improved after Richardson’s disqualification.
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“I want to take responsibility for my actions,” Richardson said in an interview with the “Today” show on Friday. “I know what I did. I know what I’m supposed to do. I know what I’m allowed not to do. But I still made that decision. I’m not making an excuse.”
“Don’t judge me because I am human,” she added further in the interview.
Richardson told NBC that her use of the substance, which is prohibited by the World Anti-doping Agency from the evening before a race and until the event’s conclusion, was part of a way to deal with the death of her biological mother — news she learned a week before the Olympic trials.
“It sent me into a state of emotional panic,” Richardson said, adding that she didn’t know how to handle her emotional distress at the time.
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U.S. Reps. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) co-authored a letter to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) urging the body to overturn Richardson’s ban, writing that the suspension is the result of an “antiquated prohibition.”
“Anti-marijuana laws have a particularly ugly history of systemic racism. We call on [World Anti-Doping Agency] and USADA to reconsider restrictions on recreational marijuana use and any current suspensions that are in place on that basis.”
The Democratic representatives asked for a response to their letter no later than July 9.
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