Sha’Carri Richardson Stumbles With Untied Shoe at US Olympic Trials and Still Wins

Richardson is looking to cement her spot on the US Track and Field team for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

June 22, 2024

Sha'Carri Richardson sprinting during a track and field event, wearing a fitted athletic suit with long sleeves — (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
Steph Chambers / Getty Images

Sha'Carri Richardson turned a nearly disastrous moment into a victorious one when she won a U.S. Olympic Team Trials race for track and field with an untied shoe.

On Friday, Richardson participated in the 100-meter heat race in Eugene, Ore., and she was heavily favored to win the event but she started out with some trouble. At the start of the race, Richardson stumbled but managed to pick up speed and finish in first place with an evening-best 10.88 seconds, .02 seconds off the time she recorded in 2021. Even more remarkable is that cameras caught Richardson running with her right shoelace untied.

"I definitely didn't have the start I've been training to have in this moment," she said, according to NBC. "But I'm still not panicking. I'm staying patient and knowing no matter what's going on, to continue to run my race."

Richardson will be looking to punch her ticket to the 2024 Paris Olympics on Saturday night as she'll be racing in the semifinals. If she finishes in the top two of the race, she'll go on to the finals for a chance to head to the Olympics.

The 24-year-old has been on a redemption tour since her trial win in 2021 was erased after she tested positive for marijuana. At the time, Richardson claimed she was dealing with depression and her mother's death, amongst other personal issues.

"I'm enjoying the recognition of hard work, the support that comes with it," she said after her most recent race. "The fact that the world can see so much work I've done on myself, for myself, and the world receives that, I'm appreciative and I will always show up for my fans."