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Sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson Could Miss Tokyo Olympics 'After Testing Positive For Cannabis'

Sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson Could Miss Tokyo Olympics 'After Testing Positive For Cannabis'

Richardson established herself as a contender after winning the 100m in 10.86 seconds

Amelia Ward

Amelia Ward

A US sprinter will miss the Tokyo Olympics after reportedly testing positive for cannabis.

According to Reuters, Sha'Carri Richardson is unlikely to be able to challenge for the Olympic 100 metres title later this month.

The news agency reported a course said the test came back positive at the US Olympic trials last month. Richardson had established herself as a gold medal contender after winning the 100m in 10.86 seconds.

A positive test in the trials would mean the results would be wiped out, with another source adding that Jenna Prandini, who finished fourth in the final, was being eyed up to run for the US in the Olympics.

The 21-year-old has posted once on Twitter since the news came out, simply writing: "I am human."

Richardson is set to appear on NBC's Today Show on Friday.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) states that cannabis is banned, but if it can be proved by an athlete that the substance wasn't anything to do with sports performance, the usual four-year suspension can be reduced to three months.

If the athlete agrees to take approved treatment the ban can be reduced to one month.

Richardson would have been contending to be the first American woman to win the Olympic 100m title since Gail Devers in 1996.

But if selected by USATF, Richardson could receive a 30-day ban, backdated to the time she got her result, leaving her free to race on 6 August in Tokyo.

When she qualified for the games, Richardson told ESPN that she was reeling from the death of her mother, who passed away the week before.

She said: "My family has kept me grounded.

Richardson and her grandmother.
PA

"This year has been crazy for me. Going from just last week, losing my biological mother, and I'm still here...

"Last week, finding out my biological mother passed away and still choosing to pursue my dreams, still coming out here, still here to make the family that I do still have on this earth proud...

"I'm highly grateful for them. Without them, there would be no me. Without my grandmother, there would be no Sha'Carri Richardson. My family is my everything, my everything until the day I'm done."

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: SPORT