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- American sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson could miss the Olympics following reports of a failed doping test.
- Reuters reports that Richardson tested positive for cannabis after US Olympic trials.
- It is not clear yet if Richardson will receive a doping ban, or how long it may be for.
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American sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson could miss the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games after reportedly testing positive for cannabis.
Reuters reports via anonymous sources that Richardson tested positive for the banned substance following the US Olympic Trials where she came first in the 100m.
The Texas-born sprinter is considered a major hope for gold at the Games, having qualified first at US trials. She has run the second fastest time of any woman in the 100m in 2021, behind only Jamaica's two-time Olympic gold medalist, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.
Richardson is aiming to become the first American woman to win Olympic 100m gold since 1996, however her apparent failed drug test could end that dream.
Cannabis is on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) banned list, and can carry a maximum suspension of four years.
Under new rules introduced for recreational drugs at the beginning of 2021, that can be lowered to just three months if athletes can prove their consumption was not related to sports performance.
The ban can be further reduced to one month if the athlete is willing to undertake an approved treatment program in collaboration with their national anti-doping body.
As doping bans are generally backdated to when the test is taken, Richardson would still be able to compete at the Games if she got a one-month ban, but would miss out if she were banned for three.
On Thursday, before news of the reported test failure emerged, Richardson tweeted a cryptic message that read "I am human."
-Sha’Carri Richardson (@itskerrii) July 1, 2021
Richardson, who has been described as the most exciting sprinter since Usain Bolt, could see her place taken by 28-year-old Jenna Prandini, who finished fourth at the trials.
As the US will take three 100m sprinters to the Games, Prandini is next in line, and has been told she will be going to Tokyo, according to a New York Times report.
The sprinter from Dallas could appeal any sanction to the Court of Arbitration for Sport should she be banned.