World champion Sha’Carri Richardson referenced her faith in God and influence as a US track star in her victory speech, after winning the 2024 USATF Female Athlete of the Year Award…
Sha’Carri Richardson is well-known for having a strong belief in God, which she reiterated upon her 2024 USATF Female Athlete of the Year Award victory.
Following an incredible 2024 season in which she won the global 100-meter championship and claimed the title of fastest woman in the world, Richardson was selected the recipient of the esteemed accolade.
In addition, she won the bronze in the 200 meters and helped Team USA win the gold in the women’s 4×100-meter relay. Richardson also took home the US 100m title and set a record for the most sub-11s in the season in the 100m (12).
The 23-year-old acknowledged her obligations as a top US athlete in her victory speech and gave appreciation to God for both her accomplishment and her influence in the sport.
“With the God I worship, everything occurs at the appropriate time. That’s why I’m the world champion here today: this was the right moment for it to happen.
This is the time when it will have the biggest effect, be the strongest, and be the most genuine, according to Richardson.
“I am aware of my influence and my responsibility as a top female athlete in the United States, as well as to my country, my black family, my lovely women, and to everyone who has been mistreated for attempting to be themselves and not be classified just because they participate in track and field and are placed in a bubble.”
Other notable winners of the evening included Dennis Mitchell, who was named Coach of the Year, Discus thrower Laulauga Tausaga-Collins, who became the first American female athlete to win a world title in a throwing event in Budapest, and Noah Lyles, who was named the Jesse Owens Male Athlete of the Year.
For her achievements both on and off the track, the late Tori Bowie—the triple Olympic medallist from Rio 2016 and the world champion in the 100 meters in 2017—was posthumously given the Legacy Award.
