Shakari Richardson’s look at her British and German opponents at the end of the women’s 4×100 relay was one of the iconic Olympic moments.
The 24-year-old Richardson was the anchor of the U.S. relay team and took the baton from Gabby Thomas before overcoming a two- or three-meter deficit to win the sprinter’s first Olympic gold medal.
She explained: Interview with Refinery29 The cocky stare wasn’t directed at his opponent, but rather a metaphorical look at himself in the mirror.
“Honestly, that look, if I had to emphasize anything, that look was just like a mirror reflecting that side of me, and I’m seeing a version of myself that no one else sees, if that makes sense,” Richardson told the outlet.
“I looked around and I knew that no matter what was going on, no one was going to let me get in front of them, not even me. It might sound crazy, but I was in that lane and I always felt like I was my biggest competitor. [so I had to] I will do my best on the track.”
She continued that this expression was not meant to intimidate the other person, but to motivate herself.
“I thought to myself, “You can’t help but give it your best on the track, so just looking out there, it showed that all the hard work that all of us women put in in that 4×1 race was not going to be in vain,” Richardson told media. “I can’t allow myself to not cross the line in first place and not get a medal, and I can’t allow myself to let down those women and the support that we had in crossing the line in first place as Team USA.”
Melissa Jefferson and Towanisha Terry were the other two members of the U.S. gold medal relay team.
Richardson won silver in the individual 100m final, his first Olympic medal since being forced to miss the Tokyo Olympics after testing positive for marijuana.
