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US sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson's Olympic career has suddenly become uncertain after she tested positive for THC in a pre-qualifying drug test.
The 21-year-old athlete, who finished her 100 meter sprint with a time of 10.86 seconds, may not get to compete in the Olympic games in Tokyo, effectively taking away the United States' chances for a gold medal in the competition.
Richardson went live to say she'd been using THC in order to cope with the trauma of her biological mother's death.
"I know what I did. I know what I'm supposed to do ... I still made that decision." \n\nSha'Carri Richardson explains her positive test for cannabis at the U.S. Olympic trials. (via @TODAYshow)pic.twitter.com/OEyn95h5b9— ESPN (@ESPN) 1625230363
Sha'Carri Richardson apologized Friday for testing positive for marijuana at the U.S Olympic trials last month, saying she used it as a coping mechanism after finding out her biological mother had died.pic.twitter.com/6N18jv2WrE— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) 1625235267
Sha\u2019Carri Richardson is the first Olympian to be barred from competing for using a performance diminishing drug.— Bess Kalb (@Bess Kalb) 1625247261
Sha\u2019Carri Richardson is barred from competing in the Olympics for smoking marijuana after learning from a reporter that her mother died\n\nBut Matt Gaetz is still on the Judiciary Committee even after child sex trafficking allegations corroborated by his wing-man— Lindy Li (@Lindy Li) 1625248279
So let me get this straight: the cannabis industry is projected to rake in $70 billion by 2028, but thousands of people are behind bars for cannabis charges, and Sha\u2019Carri Richardson is suspended from the Olympics for using it?— Robert Reich (@Robert Reich) 1625253140
The drug tests, which are normally administered to make sure athletes are not taking any sort of hormones or steroids that would give them an unfair advantage, are being criticized across the board by athletes and fans alike, as THC has actually become legal to varying degrees across the world.
Not only that, but a ban on natural-hair swim caps for black swimmers has called the racism of the Olympics into question, and whether or not the decision to ban Richardson is racist.
Swim caps from Black-owned swim brand Soul Cap, whose designs are made for natural Black hair and other voluminous hair types, have been barred from use at the Olympics\n\nFINA ruled that no athletes need \u201ccaps of such size\u201d and the caps don\u2019t follow \u201cthe natural form of the head\u201dpic.twitter.com/pyTg8SOw2l— Bleacher Report (@Bleacher Report) 1625246468
Between Sha\u2019Carri Richardson and this, the Olympics really are sending quite the message to black womenhttps://twitter.com/bleacherreport/status/1411012074709274624\u00a0\u2026— Jemele Hill (@Jemele Hill) 1625248669
Michael Phelps— Mike Blaze (@Mike Blaze) 1625249314
Namibia's Christine Mboma and Beatrice Masilingi have been withdrawn from the 400m race at the Olympics by World Athletics.\n\nThey are said to not be eligible for female classification.\n\nThe same rules are affecting Caster Semenya, Francine Niyonsaba and Margaret Wambui.pic.twitter.com/5I4WF4ZL7Z— Africa Facts Zone (@Africa Facts Zone) 1625215161
reasons to boycott the olympics:\n\n-they r banning BLM apparel\n\n-they arent letting sha'carri race bc she smoked weed\n\n-they r banning Afro swimming caps, which was made for Black folks\n\n-two Nambian women have been withdrawn due to testosterone testing to prove "female" enoughhttps://twitter.com/AfricaFactsZone/status/1410880763290132481\u00a0\u2026— GET VACCINATED (@GET VACCINATED) 1625236230
As the ban currently stands, Richardson could be banned from 1-3 months. Anything longer than a 1 month ban would remove her from the Olympics entirely, but with a 1-month ban, she could still compete in the 4x100 relays with her team.
But the Olympics has shown a penchant for mercilessness within the past 24 hours, with news continuing to come out about its treatment of black women.
Brianna McNeal was suspended for five years and stripped of her medals after it was revealed that she used THC as well to cope with the trauma of an abortion.
The way Olympic athletics is treating Black women is horrendous and ignorant of the complexities of our lives. Issuing a 5 year suspension to and stripping @Bri_Rollin of her medals and winnings because she wanted to keep her abortion private is awful.https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/01/sports/olympics/abortion-doping-olympics-mcneal.html?referringSource=articleShare\u00a0\u2026— Renee Bracey Sherman (@Renee Bracey Sherman) 1625239164
- Sha\u2019Carri disqualified for smoking weed\n\n- Swim caps made for Afro hair are banned\n\n- Black women disqualified because they have \u201ctoo much testosterone\u201d ()\n\nAll within 72 hours.\n\nThe Olympics has a huge problem with racism, sexism, and transphobia. Black women deserve better.— Dan (@Dan) 1625235137
Between swim caps, weed, and hormones, the Olympics really went hard at Black women this week. Though there\u2019s no week that\u2019s w/o misogynoir, anti-Blackness, or gender essentialism- this week has been quite spectacular in its handling of us.— Treva B (@Treva B) 1625240746
Seems like the olympic committee should be more concerned by how they're bringing thousands of people together while the delta variant is gaining steam than policing Black women's hair, hormones, and weed.— Read Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler (@Read Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler) 1625245076
More racism & transphobia coming from the Olympics. \n\nI just can't help but think about how Phelps was celebrated for his natural differences that gave him an advantage in his sport, but Black women are consistently put down for theirs. This SAME thing happened to Caster Semenya.https://twitter.com/AfricaFactsZone/status/1410880763290132481\u00a0\u2026— valkyrie \u270a\ud83c\udffe\ud83c\uddf5\ud83c\uddf7 (@valkyrie \u270a\ud83c\udffe\ud83c\uddf5\ud83c\uddf7) 1625240963
The Olympics should take a long, hard look at the message it is sending to black women around the world and decide where its priorities lie.
Because the message right now is crystal clear: if you're a black woman, you are being kept from competing in the Olympics by some excuse or another.