Sha'Carri Richardson out of Tokyo Olympics after being left off USA Track and Field team
Sha’Carri Richardson will not represent the USA Track & Field in the Tokyo Olympic Games this year after the organization on Tuesday announced she would not compete in the 4×100 women’s relay.
In a statement, USATF expressed sympathy for Richardson’s situation — she was suspended from competition for a month after testing positive for marijuana at the U.S. track and field trials in Oregon last month— but said it would not be fair to change the rules after competition had occurred and with only weeks remaining before the start of the Olympics:
“While USATF fully agrees that the merit of the World Anti-Doping Agency rules related to THC should be reevaluated, it would be detrimental to the integrity of the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Track & Field if USATF amended its policies following competition, only weeks before the Olympic Games,” the organization said.
“All USATF athletes are equally aware of and must adhere to the current anti-doping code, and our credibility as the national governing body would be lost if rules were only enforced under certain circumstances.”
MORE: How Richardson’s Olympic suspension differs from Michael Phelps’ 2009 suspension
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency on Friday announced Richardson would be suspended 30 days for her positive test, guaranteeing she would not be able to run in her primary event, the 100-meter dash, despite finishing first in qualifying with a time of 10.86 seconds. Based on the duration of her suspension, it was still possible she could have been selected for the 4×100 relay competition, the date of which will occur after the conclusion of her suspension (Aug. 5).
