Will Sha'Carri Richardson be able to compete at World Championships?
Sha'Carri Richardson has said she will seek help after being arrested following an altercation with her boyfriend, the fellow US sprinter Christian Coleman.
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The 25-year-old was detained at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Washington after the incident; a video of which shows her pushing her partner into a wall, grabbing his bags, and throwing headphones at him.
Richardson was released the day after and has competed again.
She is reigning World Athletics Champion for the women’s 100m, a title she won at Budapest 2023 and was hoping to defend in Tokyo this summer.
The airport incident has put her participation in doubt, however.
"I'm taking this time to not only see myself but get myself a certain level of help that overall is going to reflect who I truly am,” Richardson said.
"I love him [Coleman] and to him I can't apologise enough,” she added and posted a fuller statement as part of an Instagram story.
Coleman, 29, also a former world 100m champion, is not pressing charges.
"She has a lot of things going on, a lot of emotions and forces going on inside of her that not only I can't understand, but nobody can,” the sprinter told The Athletic.
Will Sha'Carri Richardson compete at the World Athletics Championships?
The US has not named its team for the championships in Tokyo, which will be held from September 13-21.
The country picks the first three athletes to finish in each event at its track and field trials, which were held from July 31 to August 3, providing they have the qualification standard.
After her arrest, Richardson did make it to the championships in Eugene, Oregon, to compete over 200m but missed on qualification to the final.
She will not compete in that event but, having won the 100m title two years ago, she could still compete in the shorter distance by virtue of having the defending champion’s wild card.
It is possible she could also be selected for the US women’s 4x100m relay.
While she is free to compete, it is unclear if she will do so and how long she intends to take out to reflect on her actions. She previously missed the 2021 Olympics, also in Tokyo, after testing positive for using cannabis.
Richardson's season's best of 11.07 seconds puts her 61st on the yearly ranking list but is form enough to suggest that with some small improvements she could at least make the final.
Coleman will not be competing in the individual 100m or 200m after missing out on the top three places in Eugene. It is also possible for him to get a relay berth.