It would’ve been understandable for Sha’Carri Richardson to get lost in endless questions of “What if?”
After finishing second in the women’s 100 meters at the Paris Olympics following so much hype going into the Games, the dominant narrative could’ve easily been that her silver medal was a disappointment.
But in a performance that will go down in sports history, Richardson’s sprint to Olympic gold in the final leg of the women’s 4×100 relay halted any doubts or criticisms in their tracks. Her win after heartbreak in 2021 showed resiliency and was an inspiring story that led her to be named the Outsports 2024 Person of the Year.
As the out bisexual athlete said after last year’s national championships, “I’m not back. I’m better.”
With all runners competing in a driving rainstorm straight out of a Lady Gaga/Ariana Grande collab, a slight handoff hesitation earlier in the Olympics race left Team USA trailing by the time Richardson took the baton.
Everyone watching knew she’d finish strong, but the question was: would it be enough to overcome the deficit and rewrite her Olympic story?
The instant she grabbed the stick, it was like saying, “I told you.”
It was one thing to blaze past the rest of her competitors in a way that made you wonder if she’d leave permanent scorch marks in the track. That would’ve been enough for a compelling story of perseverance and triumph.
But then there was Richardson’s signature moment: the side-eye of glory.
After bolting out into the lead just before she hit the finish line, Richardson turned her head to look back at the rest of her competitors and dismissed them with one glance.
By itself, her victory was iconic.
But Richardson, a member of Team LGBTQ, also pulled it off it with the kind of zazz that outshone even the gold medal she won. (Richardson is out as bisexual, having posted as such in 2015. Recently she has been rumored to be romantically linked with fellow U.S. sprinter Christian Coleman.)
The moment was a perfect coda to a saga that kicked into high gear when Richardson appeared to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 one week after finding out her biological mother passed away.
Maddeningly, after she tested positive for pot, she then got suspended for one month and was forced to miss the Games that she’d just qualified for.
Richardson’s victorious run in Paris was three years in the making. The fortitude she showed in coming back from the disappointment of 2021 and her second place finish in the 100 meters is what turned her into a great Olympic hero who will be celebrated for decades.
It was more than just a redemption story. It was proof that “I’m not back. I’m better” was the truth.
Previous Outsports Person Of The Year honorees:
2023: Kevin Maxen
2022: Brittney Griner
2021: Carl Nassib
2020: Katie Sowers
2019: Megan Rapinoe
2018: Adam Rippon
2017: Ryan O’Callaghan
2016: Chris Mosier
2015: Dalton Maldonado
2014: Michael Sam
