They got her back no matter what! Sha’Carri Richardson’s parents are there for her no matter what. The track and field star is making moves at the Olympics under Team USA and her family is there to support her along the way.
Sha’Carri Richardson grew up in Dallas and became a running legend when she broke the women’s world record. She broke two U20 world records on the same day at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships. Sha’carri was disqualified from the 2021 Tokyo Olympics trials and served a one-month suspension for testing positive for THC (cannabis) when she used it shortly after the death of her biological mother. Her family was there for her during that time, telling reporters, “Without them, there would be no me. Without my grandmother, there would be no Sha’Carri Richardson. So my family is my everything. My everything until the day I’m done.”
However, she’s back and sprinting towards the finish line at the 2024 Paris Olympics and her family is there to give her whatever whenever they can.
Sha’carri Richardson was raised by her grandmother Betty, who she refers to as “Big Momma.” She credits her as the person “making me the person I am.”
Betty is very proud of her granddaughter but tries to keep it realistic when she’s home. “We try not to go out in public when she’s here,” Betty told Vogue. “If Sha’Carri’s home, that’s private time. Nobody looking at her. Just playing card games, fooling around with her cousins. Just loving her to death.”
Her grandmother helped her become the woman that she was today from her own experience. “I’m a strong woman, I’ve overcome obstacles in my life, she said. “So I knew what I was talking about when, from time to time, things got hard and she’d want to quit—and I’d say, ‘Don’t start nothing and don’t finish it. You start, you finish,’ ” Whatever happens, you keep going, you hear?”
When she’s not in Texas, Sha’carri misses her grandmother’s cooking—her specialty is chicken and smothered potatoes, collard greens with fastback, and Texas toast with homemade sausage and eggs.
Sha’Carri Richardson’s mom’s identity is unknown. Sha’carri didn’t know her mother well and found out that she died from a reporter during the Olympic trials. She said, per NBC: “I want to thank her for bringing me into this world. I respect her and love her. I know she loves me.”
Sha’carri used marijuana to cope with the loss and discovery of information. “It sent me into a state of emotional panic,” she told TODAY in 2021. “I didn’t know how to control my emotions or deal with my emotions during that time.”
She also apologized to her fans and sponsors, saying, “I greatly apologize if I let you guys down, and I did.”