Five days into the Olympic track and field competition, Team USA is well on their way to matching their Tokyo medal count of 26. With 11 medals — three of them gold — the US leads all nations in the sport, with Kenya siting in second place with three medals.
US women make Olympic history
Triple jumper Jasmine Moore kicked things off on Saturday, becoming the first US woman in history to win bronze in her event.
Then yesterday, Tokyo discus gold medalist Valarie Allman notched a 69.50-meter toss, becoming just the third woman to secure back-to-back golds in the event.
St. Lucia's Alfred takes fastest woman title
Though two US women made Saturday’s 100-meter podium — Sha’Carri Richardson won silver while Melissa Jefferson won bronze — it was Julien Alfred who raced into the history books.
The 23-year-old secured Saint Lucia’s first-ever Olympic medal with her gold medal win, finishing 0.15 seconds ahead of Richardson — the event's largest margin of victory since 2008.
Missing from this year’s 100-meter race was 2008 gold medalist and Jamaican legend Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who failed to run in her qualifying semifinal days after fellow Jamaican and 100-meter favorite Shericka Jackson bowed out of the event.
And with three of the eight-runner lineup repping Team USA, including gold medal–favorite and world No. 2 Gabby Thomas, Tuesday's race to watch is the 200-meter final, which takes off at 3:40 PM ET.
Where to watch Team USA compete in Olympic track and field events
Track and field events will continue through August 11th, with live coverage across NBC networks.
Olympic track and field takes flight today, with a talented Team USA looking to ascend the podium once again.
From early this morning until a few hours before the Closing Ceremony, track and field stars will compete across 48 events in a quest for Olympic glory.
USA track and field shoots for Olympic podium return
In 2021, Team USA led all nations with a collective 26 medals, with athletes competing in women’s events — including Katie Moon (pole vault), Valarie Allman (discus), and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (400-meter hurdles) — responsible for five of the team’s seven golds.
Since then, the squad has only improved, earning 33 and 29 medals at the last two World Athletics Championships respectively, including 12 golds in Budapest last summer.
New rule offers track and field athletes an Olympic redo
For the first time in Olympic history, the 2024 Games will feature a repechage round in the 200-meter through 1,500-meter races, offering athletes who underperformed in heats a second shot at advancing.
In previous Olympics, those spots went to athletes who failed to qualify in their heats but had the fastest overall non-advancing times.
"It’s kind of like a make-up quiz," said US Trials 100-meter hurdles champ Masai Russell. "If it didn’t go right the first time, you could get it right the second time. That’s really good because I feel like with the hurdles especially, anything can happen."
Team USA women's track and field athletes to watch
To call Team USA stacked would be an understatement. These are just a handful of the 61 US women’s sports superstars expected to set the standard in Paris.
Sha’Carri Richardson: Making her highly anticipated Olympic debut after a 2021 suspension, 2024’s fastest woman is favored to become Team USA’s first women’s 100-meter gold medalist since 1996 — and with Jamaica’s Shericka Jackson dropping that race, it’s Richardson’s to lose.
Gabby Thomas: Tokyo bronze medalist Thomas will face back-to-back world champion Jackson in the 200-meter, with both runners chasing legend Florence Griffith-Joyner’s 1988 world record.
Katie Moon: Tokyo gold medalist Moon will defend her pole vaulting title at her second Olympics in Paris, going up against stiff competition in the form of fellow Olympic gold medalist, Greece’s Aikaterini Stefanidi.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone: The 400-meter hurdles star's biggest competition is herself: McLaughlin-Levrone has lowered her own world record five times and is poised to become the event’s first-ever two-time Olympic champ.
Chase Jackson: The world’s top-ranked women's shot putter, Jackson will make her Olympic debut in Paris after winning gold at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships.
The 2024 US Olympic Track & Field Trials returned to action on Thursday, with track stars Sha’Carri Richardson and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone both in the mix.
Richardson is competing in the 200-meter after winning the 100-meter and securing her spot on the Olympic team. McLaughlin-Levron, meanwhile, is competing in the 400-meter hurdles — an event in which she currently holds the world record.
McLaughlin-Levron won Thursday's heat handily, and will now advance to Saturday's semifinal. Her time of 53.07 bested Anna Cockrell's second-fastest time by 1.64 seconds.
"[That] felt good," she told NBC after the win. "I'm honestly excited to be out here and shake off the nerves. My stride pattern felt good. Just getting the feel of the rounds again; I really feel good."
Richardson also made light work of Thursday's heats, winning the 200-meter hurdles with a time of 21.99 — the second-fastest recorded this year — and advancing with ease to the semifinals.
"I’m really just focusing in on executing the curve to make the straightaway much, much easier," she told reporters. "Any time I touch the track it's an opportunity for me to work on my best self."
Elsewhere, discus thrower Valarie Allman confirmed that she too would defend her Tokyo medal in Paris this summer, winning her event on Thursday by more than eight meters.
Sha’Carri Richardson has punched her ticket to the Paris Olympics after finishing first in 100-meter final at the US Olympic Track & Field Trials over the weekend.
Her time — 10.71 — sets a record as the fastest time in the world this year. After finishing, she dropped to one knee and bent her head to savor the moment.
"Definitely still confidence, still my exciting normal self, but more so overwhelmed with just emotions of joy," Richardson said of her post-race celebration. "I know that the hard work I've put into, not just physically on the track but as well as mentally and emotionally to grow into the mature young lady that I am today and that I'm going to grow into was a full-fledged surreal moment for me to actually embrace and be able to show to the world and on the track."
It was a statement-making turn in a comeback story that saw Richardson disqualified from the Tokyo Olympics due to testing positive for THC after that year's Olympic Trials.
"Everything I've been through is everything I have been through to be in this moment right now," Richardson said. "There's nothing I've been through that hasn't designed me to sit right here in front of you to answer this question."
Now, Richardson is expected to bring home some hardware from Paris, having grown into one of the greatest sprinters in the world. She won the 100-meter and 4x100-meter relay events at the World Championships last summer. And before this year's Olympic Trials conclude, she’ll look to also qualify for the 200-meter event.
"In the past three years, I've grown a better understanding of myself, a deeper respect and appreciation for my gift that I have in the sport, as well as my responsibility to the people that believe in and support me," Richardson said. "I feel like all of those components have helped me grow and will continue to help me grow into the young lady that I have been divined and by God been blessed to be."
The US Olympic Track & Field Trials begin on June 21st, kicking off a 10-day quest to determine who will represent the US in Paris this summer.
The crucial meet will take place in Eugene, Oregon, where the top three finishers in each event will punch their ticket to the 2024 Olympics. As with this past week's US Swimming Trials, even the most decorated athletes must work to earn their spot — and one bad performance could undermine four years of preparation.
Reigning 100-meter World Champion Sha'Carri Richardson headlines this year's field, as the 24-year-old looks to qualify for her second Olympic Games and compete in her first. Richardson is a world champion in both the 100-meter and 200-meter sprint, but missed the Tokyo Olympics due to testing positive for THC shortly after the last US Olympic Trials.
Other standouts include 400-meter Olympic gold medal-winning hurdler Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, who's currently the most decorated athlete in the active women's US Track & Field pool. McLaughlin-Levrone qualified to run in the 200-meter and 400-meter flat races alongside the 400-meter hurdles at the Olympic Trials, but opted to focus solely on her signature event.
800-meter specialist Athing Mu will also be a huge draw this week, as the Olympic gold medalist looks to shake off a lingering hamstring injury while pursuing her second Summer Games. Gold medal-winning pole vaulter Katie Moon will also attempt to qualify for her second-straight Olympic Games.
Ole Miss star McKenzie Long could be Richardson's greatest competition in the 100-meter and 200-meter events, as well as Richardson's Worlds teammate Gabby Thomas in the 200-meter. In field events, watch for Oregon senior Jaida Ross going head-to-head with reigning world champion Chase Jackson in the shot put, as both push for their first Olympic team berth.
Regardless of why you tune in, the US Olympic Trials are a perpetually thrilling and sometimes brutal qualification process. If you're able to make your way to the head of the pack, a shot at Olympic glory might just be waiting at the finish line.
Fans can catch live coverage throughout the Trials via NBC, USA, and Peacock.
A number of women’s sports stars have made this year’s Forbes “30 Under 30” list, including Sophia Smith and Angel Reese.
Forbes features 30 people who are changing the game in sports, including Smith, who helped lead the U.S. women’s national team in the 2023 World Cup. Despite a disappointing finish at the tournament, the 23-year-old forward represents the future of the national team, and she also won the NWSL Golden Boot with 11 goals for the Portland Thorns.
Reese led the LSU basketball team to its first national title in April 2023. The Most Outstanding Player of the 2023 Final Four, the 21-year-old’s national profile skyrocketed, and she has endorsement deals with Reebok, Coach and more. While Reese is off to a rocky start to the new season, including an unexplained four-game absence, she remains among the biggest stars in the college game.
Other honorees from the world of women’s sports include:
- Napheesa Collier, 27, Minnesota Lynx forward
- Jessica Pegula, 29, tennis player
- Kate Douglass, 22, Team USA swimmer
- Sha’Carri Richardson, Team USA sprinter
- Olivia Dunne, 21, LSU gymnast
- Diana Flores, 26, flag football quarterback
- Maddie Musselman, 25, Team USA water polo player
Several more names included on the list come from the business side of women’s sports, including Robyn Brown, who is the senior manager of brand and content strategy for the Phoenix Mercury, and Natalie White, who founded women’s basketball shoe brand Moolah Kicks.
When it comes to Halloween, A’ja Wilson always aces the assignment.
The 2023 WNBA Finals MVP dressed as all five characters from “Codename: Kids Next Door,” an animated series that ran on Cartoon Network from 2002 to 2006. She pulled off a similarly impressive costume in 2022, when she dressed as all five characters from “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!”
And she was far from the only name from women’s sports to get in on the Halloween action. Here are some of the standout costumes from the holiday.
A’ja Wilson, Las Vegas Aces
Wilson doesn’t skimp on the details for “Operation: H.A.L.L.O.W.E.E.N.” Just take a look at her Instagram gallery, which shows the costumed Aces star next to each character.
Kerry Washington, actress
The 46-year-old actress, best known for her role as Olivia Pope in “Scandal,” dressed as American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson — or in this case, Sha’Kerry. Richardson won the world title in the 100-meter dash in August.
San Diego Wave
The No. 1 seed in the NWSL playoffs, the Wave are preparing for Sunday’s semifinal against OL Reign. But that didn’t stop them from celebrating Halloween.
Shae Yanez stole the show, dressing up as head coach Casey Stoney, cooler and all. Other costumes included Meggie Dougherty Howard as Wednesday Addams, and Madison Pogarch and Christen Westphal combining for a tribute to painter Bob Ross.
Morgan Weaver, Portland Thorns
The 26-year-old forward showed up for training dressed as Harry Potter — and assistant coach Robert Gale stepped in as Draco Malfoy. No. 2 seed Portland is preparing to host Gotham FC in the NWSL semifinals.
Happy Halloween from the iconic duo of Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy 😭🪄@morganvweaver x @galey77 pic.twitter.com/eCE1NwMcc7
— x - Portland Thorns FC (@ThornsFC) October 31, 2023
Ghosts of Halloween costumes past
In addition to the new crop of costumes, we brought back some of the best from past years, including Sam Kerr and Kristie Mewis, Lynn Williams, Alex Morgan, Sydney Leroux and more.
Sha’Carri Richardson has had a track season to remember.
Earlier this year, she won the U.S. title in the 100-meter dash, then declared to the world: “I’m not back, I’m better.” And better she has been.
She ran two personal bests this season and won the 100 at the 2023 World Track and Field championships in Budapest last month. She also led the U.S. to gold in the 4×100 relay at the same event while finishing with a bronze medal in the 200.
Through it all Richardson, who was absent from the Tokyo Olympics due to a positive drug test, has remained joyous. That has been evident, even as she finished fourth in the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene over the weekend. She said Saturday that she’s “fallen back in love with my sport” over the last year while sporting her natural hair, something she said she had to do after winning the world title in the 100.
“My coach, I told him that if I went 10.6 I would wear my natural hair,” she told NBC. “When I became the world champion and set a championship record I ran a 10.65, so I had to pull out the natural.”
"I had to pull out the natural."
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) September 16, 2023
Sha'Carri Richardson on wearing her natural hair in her final race of the track & field season. pic.twitter.com/sAJK36Wtvy
She also elaborated on how she’s fallen back in love with the track.
“I feel like for a while, I saw this sport more as a job than the love I knew I had for it,” she said. “I’m just whole all over again.”
And despite finishing fourth on Saturday, behind champion Shericka Jackson of Jamaica, Richardson said that she felt “amazing” about her performance.
“All of the women who placed above me are literally legends, and I give them the utmost respect,” she said. “There is no (bad) race anytime we line up, we have to bring our A games every time. I love racing against those women, they bring out the best in me. And I’m looking forward to competing with these ladies at their fullest health and their fullest happiness next year for the Olympics.”
“I’m having so much more fun, and I want people to understand it is not just because of winning,” she continued. “I’m having fun because I’m better within my spirit, within my mind, within my community that I created for myself. That’s the happiness that you guys see. The wins are just the bonus, but it shows when you’re whole within yourself what you will attract.”
The next year will be a big one, with the Paris Olympics just 10 months away. But Richardson is approaching it “as determined as I can be” while also maintaining her happiness.
“Knowing that everyone is going to bring their A game, it just makes me want to bring my best as well,” she said. “The goal for the 200 next year, there are so many great ladies in the 200, the second fastest woman in the world ever (Jackson) runs it now, so I’ve definitely gotta bring my A game lining up against her and all the ladies.
“I’m not one of those who just wins the 100. I’m a 100 and 200 runner and I want you guys to see that, and I want to bring that out. I can’t wait for next year. … The best is yet to come. I’m only 23, so just wait and see.”
After winning the women’s 100m at USATF Nationals, Sha’Carri Richardson repeated a line that has guided her 2023 season: “I’m not back. I’m better.”
By winning the race at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, Richardson earned a spot at August’s World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, which will be her first major global championship. (Video of Richardson’s 100m win is embedded below.)
Richardson burst onto the scene in 2019 when set broke the 100m collegiate record at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships. She turned pro days later, but went on to place eighth at USATF Nationals, missing that year’s world championships.
Two years later, Richardson entered the 2021 season looking like the Olympic favorite. She won the women’s 100m at U.S. Olympic Trials, but that result was voided — and her Olympic spot revoked — after she tested positive for marijuana (which is banned in-competition).
Richardson struggled in 2022, missing out again on world championships after she was eliminated in the first round of the 100m at USATF Nationals. The Texas native later said she was dealing with injury.
But 2023 has been Richardson’s year. She opened the outdoor season by beating a stacked field — including five-time Olympic medalist Shericka Jackson of Jamaica and two-time Olympic medalist Dina Asher-Smith of Great Britain — to claim her first Diamond League win.
“I found my peace back on the track, and I’m not letting anything or anybody take that anymore,” Richardson said then.
During the preliminary round of the 100m in Eugene, Richardson clocked 10.71 — a new personal best and the fastest time by an American woman in 12 years. Only Jackson (10.65) has run faster this year.
While Richardson didn’t have the best start in the 100m final, she made up for it with a fierce kick, outsprinting Brittany Brown and Tamari Davis, who will also make their world championship debuts in Budapest. Richardson also has a chance to qualify for August’s World Championships in the 200m; she posted the fastest time in the preliminary round. The women’s 200m semifinals and final are on Sunday night.
Over the weekend, Richardson also took to Twitter to blast coverage of USATF Nationals and streaming issues on USATF.TV. She went on to call out FloTrack after the outlet tweeted “That’s how we do it!” about her 100m win.
Richardson replied with a GIF of Eddie Murphy from the 1999 movie Life: “We?!”
Sha'Carri Richardson took her wig off before her race...
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 8, 2023
then became national champion. #USATFOutdoors pic.twitter.com/4DE4dKUAxE
Sha’Carri Richardson runs 10.82 to take the women’s 100m national title.#USATFOutdoors | 📺: @CNBC and @peacock pic.twitter.com/06pj0m8SIr
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 8, 2023
"I'm not back. I'm better."
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) July 8, 2023
Sha’Carri Richardson after taking the women’s 100m national title. pic.twitter.com/2uJexyoB6S
Sha’Carri Richardson made a statement on Friday, recording her biggest victory in two years. Competing at the first Diamond League stop of the season in Doha, Qatar, Richardson won the women’s 100m in 10.76 seconds, the world’s best time in 2023. It is also the first Diamond League victory of her career.
“I found my peace back on the track, and I’m not letting anything or anybody take that anymore,” Richardson said in her post-race interview.
Richardson defeated a field that included five-time Olympic medalist Shericka Jackson (2nd) and two-time Olympic medalist Dina Asher-Smith (3rd), plus fellow Americans TeeTee Terry (4th), Teahna Daniels (6th), Melissa Jefferson (7th) and Abby Steiner (8th). Video of the race is embedded below.
Sha'Carri Richardson wins the women's 100m at the first #DiamondLeague meet of the year in 10.76 seconds. pic.twitter.com/tuA5ZiYW9o
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) May 5, 2023
Richardson is the fourth fastest American woman all-time, behind Florence Griffith-Joyner (1988, 10.49), Carmelita Jeter (2009, 10.64), and Marion Jones (10.65, 1998). Richardson’s 100 meter personal best (wind legal) was recorded in April 2021 (10.72).
Still, the 23-year-old has yet to compete at a major global championship. Richardson, the 2019 NCAA champion, won the women’s 100m at U.S. Olympic Trials in 2021, but her result was disqualified after she tested positive for marijuana (a substance that is banned in-competition).
She struggled in 2022, failing to qualify for last year’s World Championships after she was eliminated in the first round of the 100m at USATF Outdoor Nationals.
But Richardson’s result on Friday is a promising sign for 2023. The biggest track and field competition this season is the World Championships, which will be held in Budapest, Hungary, in August. In order to qualify for the individual 100 meter race, Richardson will need to finish in the top three during the USA Track & Field Outdoor Championships in July.
“Y’all say I’m back,” Richardson said in an Instagram video ahead of the race in Doha. “I’m not back. I’m better.”