Sha'Carri Richardson runs down Julien Alfred to avenge Olympic final loss at Zurich Diamond League 2024

Sha'Carri Richardson avenged her loss to Julien Alfred in the Paris Olympics at the Zurich Diamond League. The reigning world champion beat the reigning Olympic champion by 0.04 seconds in the 100m on a rain-soaked track.

Richardson and Alfred had faced each other five times before the clash at Zurich Diamond League. The sprinting stars first met at the 2023 Gyulai Istvan Memorial, where Alfred won in 10.89s while the American clocked 10.97s for second place.

The two faced off next in the World Championship finals where Richardson dominated with a stunning run. She clocked a blistering 10.65s for the gold medal while Alfred finished fifth. The world champion secured another win at the Prefontaine Classic earlier this year, winning in 10.83s. However, two months later, Alfred handed her back-to-back losses at the Paris Olympics 2024.

Sha'Carri Richardson avenged her Olympic loss at the Zurich Diamond League. While the American was off to her usual slow start, she got past Alfred well before the finish line. She clocked 10.84s for the win, while Alfred was second in 10.88s. Great Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith finished third in 10.89s.

Richardson had a poor start in the 100m final at the Paris Olympics while Alfred was quick off the blocks. The 24-year-old couldn't chase her down in Paris but has now done it in Zurich. The two will now meet in the 100m again at the Brussels Diamond League on September 13.

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Sha'Carri Richardson explains her fiery lookover during the 4x100m final at Paris Olympics

The Olympic Games-Paris 2024 - Sha'Carri Richardson (Source: Getty)

After winning the silver medal in the 100m dash, Sha'Carri Richardson anchored the USA to the gold medal in the women's 4x100m relay. The world champion received the baton for the final leg and ran a blistering split to cross the finish line well clear before giving a fiery look over to the rest of the field.

Speaking with Refinery 29 in an interview, Richardson explained the look-over, saying:

"I looked over and I just knew that no matter what was going on, there was nobody that I was going to allow — even myself — to be in front of me. I wasn't going to even allow myself to not cross that finish line in first place and not get that medal, or to let down those ladies and the support that we received when it comes to us crossing the finish line, in first place as Team USA."

It marked Richardson’s maiden Olympic gold medal and her second Olympic medal overall.