Shericka Jackson

 

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Shericka Jackson (born 16 July 1994) is a Jamaican sprinter competing in the 60 m, 100 m, 200 m, and 400 metres. In the 100 m, she’s the fifth fastest woman of all time, while in the 200 m, she’s the second fastest woman in history.

Jackson started her career as a 400 m sprinter, winning individual bronze medals at the 2015 World Championships, 2016 Rio Olympics, and 2019 World Championships. At these competitions, she won silver in the 4 × 400 m relay at the 2016 Olympics, then gold and bronze respectively at the 2015 and 2019 World Championships. At the 2019 Championships, she also won gold in the 4 × 100 m relay.

After Jackson shifted to shorter sprints in 2021 she won bronze in the 100 m at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, also adding a gold in the 4 × 100 m relay. At the 2022 World Championships, she won gold in the 200 m setting a new national record, whilst also winning silver in the 100 m and 4 × 100 m relay. She was the 2022 Diamond League 200 m champion. The following year, she retained her 200 m title at the 2023 World Championships, running 21.41 s - the second-fastest time in history. She also won silver medals in the 100 m and 4 × 100 m relays.

Jackson is the first athlete in World Championship history to win medals in the 100, 200 and 400 metres, including the 4 × 100 and 4 × 400 metres relays. She is also the second athlete in history, behind Marita Koch to win medals in the 100, 200, 400, 4 × 100 and 4 × 400 metres at the World Championships and/or the Olympic Games. With her personal bests of 10.65 s in the 100 m, 21.41 s in the 200 m and 49.47 s in the 400 m, she is one of few women to reach high marks in all three events.

Background

Jackson was born in Jamaica. She participated in track and field at Steer Town Academy and Vere Technical schools. She represented Jamaica at age 14 in the CARIFTA Games in 2008.

Career

2008-2014: Early career

Since 2009 Shericka Jackson had been winning age-group gold medals at the CARIFTA Games, and then CACAC Junior Championships. She placed in the 200 m finals of the 2010 Youth Olympics, 2011 World Youth Championships (third), and the 2012 World Junior Championships.

In 2014, Jackson made her first professional appearance for Jamaica, competing in the 4×400 m relay at the inaugural World Relays in Nassau, winning a silver medal.

2015-2016: Breakthrough, World and Olympic Medals

At the Jamaican Championships in June, Jackson improved her 400 m personal best to 50.31 s to finish second and secure her place at the World Championships in Beijing. She followed it up by winning over 200 m at the Spitzen Leichtathletik Luzern meet in Lucerne, with a time of 22.87 s.

At the World Championships, Jackson won a shock bronze medal in the 400 m, running 49.99 s, her first sub-50 clocking. In the 4×400 m relay, Jackson was part of the Jamaican quartet that won gold over the United States.

The following year, in June, Jackson ran her first sub-51 clocking of the season to win at the Racers Grand Prix in 50.72 s. At the Jamaican Championships, she finished third over 400 m to secure her place at the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

At the Olympics, Jackson took the bronze medal over 400 m, finishing behind Shaunae Miller-Uibo and Allyson Felix in 49.85 s. She had previously ran a new personal best of 49.83 s in the heats. She followed her strong performance up by winning a silver medal in the 4×400 m relay. On 9 September, at the Diamond League Final in Brussels, she finished fourth over 400 m in 50.73 s.

2017-2020: Continued success

In April, Jackson ran a new 200 m personal best of 22.57 s at the UTech Classic in Kingston. Later that month, she won a gold medal in the 4×200 m relay at the World Relays in Yokohama.

Jackson continued her strong form by winning over 400 m at the Jamaican Championships in a season's best of 50.05 s. At the World Championships in London, she finished fifth in the 400 m final in 50.76 s. She once again improved her 200 m personal best to 22.46 s at the ISTAF Berlin meet on 27 August. At the Diamond League Final in Brussels, Jackson finished fifth over 400 m clocking a time of 51.16 s.

In 2018, she competed at the Commonwealth Games held on the Gold Coast in April, winning a silver medal over 200 m, running a personal best of 22.18 s. At the Jamaican Championships, Jackson dropped down in distance to finish third over 100 m in a personal best of 11.13 s, before winning the 200 m in a time of 22.28 s. She followed it up by recording her first ever Diamond League win in Paris, emerging victorious over 200 m in a personal best of 22.05 s.

At the inaugural Athletics World Cup held in London, Jackson won gold over 200 m in 22.35 s and silver in the 4×100 m relay. In August, she competed at the NACAC Championships, also winning gold over 200 m and silver in the 4×100 m relay. At the Diamond League Final, she finished fourth in the 200 m in 22.72 s. Jackson also finished fourth over the same distance at the Continental Cup in Prague, clocking 22.62 s

In May 2019, Jackson competed at the World Relays in Yokohama, winning a bronze medal in the 4×200 m relay. Later that year in June, she finished second over her specialist 400 m distance at the Rome Diamond League, running a time of 51.05 s. She competed at the Jamaican Championships later that month, winning the 400 m in a new personal best of 49.78 s. She followed it up with a strong performance to win at the London Diamond League in 50.69 s.

At the Pan American Games in Lima, Jackson won the 400 m in 50,78 s, pulling away from Paola Moran and Courtney Okolo in the last 100 m to secure her victory. She followed her success up by competing at the World Championships in Doha, winning a bronze medal in the 400 m in a new personal best of 49.47 s. In the 4×100 m relay, Jackson anchored Jamaica to win her first World Championship gold medal, whilst also winning her second bronze medal of the Championships in the 4×400 m relay.

2021: Switch to short sprints and 100 m Olympic bronze medal

Under the guidance of renowned coach Stephen Francis, Jackson switched to the 100 m and 200 m sprints for the 2021 season. On 29 May, she ran a new 100 m personal best of 11.02 s at the Olympic Destiny Series 2 meet in Kingston. At the Jamaican Olympic Trials, she finished second in the 100 m behind Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in a time of 10.82 s, having ran a personal best of 10.77 s in the semi-finals. Meanwhile, in the 200 m, Jackson once again finished second behind Fraser-Pryce in a personal best of 21.82 s, her first time under the 22-second barrier.

She came third in the 100 m at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics with another personal best of 10.76 s, just behind fellow country woman Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce who clocked 10.74 s. The Jamaicans swept the medal stand in the event for the second time in history as Elaine Thompson-Herah took the gold medal in 10.61 s. 

In the 200 m, she failed to advance out of the heats after she eased down before the finish line and was passed by Dalia Kaddari for the third automatic qualifying spot by four-thousandths of a second; her time of 23.26 s was not fast enough to earn one of the non-automatic qualifying places. She recovered from her disappointment to win the gold medal in the 4×100 m relay, with the Jamaican quartet running 41.02 s, the second-fastest time ever at the time. Jackson also ran in the women's 4×400 m relay, winning a bronze medal.

In her first post-Olympic race, Jackson equalled her 100 m personal best of 10.76 s to finish third at the Prefontaine Classic on 21 August, in a Jamaican 1-2-3 with Elaine Thompson-Herah and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. She followed it up with another third place at the Lausanne Diamond League in 10.92 s, finishing behind Thompson-Herah and Fraser-Pryce.[58] Over 200 m, at the Memorial Van Damme on 3 September, she was edged out by Christine Mboma, clocking a time of 21.95 s. At the Diamond League Final, Jackson ran a new 200 m personal best of 21.81 s, narrowly finishing behind Mboma.

2022: World 200 m title and NACAC 100 m title

In March, Jackson competed over 60 m at the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade, running a personal best of 7.04 s to finish sixth. In her first Diamond League of the season in Doha on 13 May, she finished second behind Gabrielle Thomas over 200 m, in 22.07 s. 

She followed it up with a third-placed finish at the Prefontaine Classic on 28 May, clocking 10.92 s to finish behind Elaine Thompson-Herah and Sha'Carri Richardson. Jackson won over 200 m at the Rome Diamond League, running a time of 21.91 s. At the Jamaican Championships, she won the 100 m in 10.77 s, only 0.01 s behind her personal best.[66] In the 200 m, she stormed to a new personal best of 21.55 s to win over Thompson-Herah.

At the World Championships in Eugene, Jackson won silver over 100 m in a new personal best of 10.73 s, being part of a Jamaican 1-2-3 as Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce won gold in 10.69 s and Elaine Thompson-Herah won bronze in 10.81 s. She went onto win over 200 m in 21.45 s, setting a new Championship record and moving her up to second on the all-time lists.

At the World Championships in Eugene, Jackson won silver over 100 m in a new personal best of 10.73 s, being part of a Jamaican 1-2-3 as Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce won gold in 10.69 s and Elaine Thompson-Herah won bronze in 10.81 s. She went onto win gold over 200 m in 21.45 s, setting a new Championship record and moving her up to second on the all-time lists. She also competed in the 4×100 m, winning a silver medal behind the United States.

On 6 August, Jackson won the 200 m at the Silesia Diamond League in 21.84 s. Two days later, she also won over the same distance at the Gyulai István Memorial, running a time of 22.02 s. She improved her 100 m personal best to 10.71 s in finishing second behind Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce at the Monaco Diamond League on 10 August. 

At the 2022 NACAC Championships in Freeport, Jackson won gold in the 100 m, running a Championship record of 10.82 s. She won again at the Brussels Diamond League on 2 September, running 10.73 s over 100 m, her second-fastest time. At the Diamond League Final in Zürich, she finished second behind Fraser-Pryce in the 100 m, running 10.81 s. However, she recovered to win the 200 m in 21.80 s.

2023: Second World 200 m title and second-fastest 200 m time

In her first 100 m of the season, Jackson ran 10.82 s to win at the MVP Velocity Fest 13 meet in Kingston. She finished second behind Sha'Carri Richardson at the Doha Diamond League on 5 May, clocking a time of 10.85 s. She continued her good form by winning the 200 m at the Rabat Diamond League, in 21.98 s. On 3 June, Jackson ran a season's best of 10.78 s over 100 m to win at the Racers Grand Prix in Kingston. 

At the Jamaican Championships, Jackson won the 100 m in a new personal best and world lead of 10.65 s, moving her up to fifth on the all-time toplists. She returned for the 200 m, winning in 21.71 s, a new world lead. On 21 July, she won over 200 m against a strong field at the Monaco Diamond League, clocking 21.86 s.

At the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, Jackson a silver medal over 100 m, running 10.72 s to finish behind Sha'Carri Richardson who ran 10.65 s. In the 200 m, she retained her gold medal in 21.41 s, the second-fastest time ever and a new Jamaican record. Jackson also competed in the 4×100 m relay, anchoring Jamaican to the silver medal behind the United States, who were anchored by Richardson.

After the Championships, she secured victory in the 200 m at the Zürich Diamond League, running a time of 21.82 s to win over second-placed Daryll Neita. She won again at the Brussels Diamond League, clocking a new Diamond League record of 21.48 s, her third-fastest time ever and the fourth fastest overall. At the Diamond League Final in Eugene on 16 September, Jackson won over 100 m, clocking 10.70 s to win by 0.05 s from Marie Josée Ta Lou-Smith. She returned the following day to also take home the 200 m title, running a meeting record of 21.57 s. Jackson ended the season with six out of the top ten fastest 200 m times of the year.

2024-2025: Injury problems and World Relays bronze

On 19 May, Jackson won the 200 m at the Marrakesh Diamond League in a time of 22.82 s. She placed a disappointing fifth over 200 m at the Bislett Games, ending her two-year unbeaten streak in the event. She returned to winning ways at the Stockholm Diamond League, running a season's best of 22.69 s despite a -2.0 headwind to beat Julia Henriksson. 

At the Jamaican Championships, she won the 100 m in 10.84 s, before also taking the 200 m title in 22.29 s, narrowly holding off Lanae-Tava Thomas who ran 22.34 s. However, after pulling up injured in the 200 m at the Gyulai István Memorial, Jackson was forced to withdraw from the Olympics in Paris with injury.

The following year, she opened her outdoor season over 300 m at the Miramar Invitational on 5 April, finishing second behind Julien Alfred in a personal best of 36.13 s. She competed at the World Relays in Guangzhou, winning a bronze medal in the 4×100 m. On 25 May, she won over 100 m at the Rabat Diamond League, clocking a time of 11.04 s. Jackson improved her 200 m season's best to 22.53 s to win at the Racers Grand Prix in Kingston on 7 June.

Marion Jones

 

COPYRIGHT FROM WIKIPEDIA

Marion Lois Jones (born October 12, 1975), also known as Marion Jones-Thompson, is an American former world champion track-and-field athlete and former professional basketball player. She won three gold medals and two bronze medals at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, but was later stripped of her medals after admitting to lying to federal investigators about her use of performance-enhancing drugs.

Jones was one of the most famous athletes to be linked to the BALCO scandal. The performance-enhancing substance usage scandal covered more than 20 top-level athletes, including Jones's ex-husband, shot putter C. J. Hunter, and 100 m sprinter Tim Montgomery.

Jones played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels, where she won the NCAA championship in 1994. She later played two season of professional basketball in the Women's National Basketball Association, as point guard for the Tulsa Shock.

Early life and education

Marion Jones was born to George Jones and his wife, Marion (originally from Belize), in Los Angeles. She holds dual citizenship with the United States and Belize.[6] Her parents split when she was very young, and Jones's mother remarried a retired postal worker, Ira Toler, three years later. 

Toler became a stay-at-home dad to Jones and her older half-brother, Albert Kelly, until his sudden death in 1987. Jones turned to sports as an outlet for her grief: running, pickup basketball games, and whatever else her brother Albert was doing athletically. By the age of 15, she was routinely dominating California high-school athletics on both the track and the basketball court.

Jones is also a 1997 graduate of the University of North Carolina (UNC).

Track and field career

In high school, Jones won the CIF California State Meet in the 100 m sprint four years in a row, representing Rio Mesa the first two years and Thousand Oaks high school the last two. In 1992, she was successfully defended by attorney Johnnie Cochran on charges of missing a routine drug test. 

She was selected the Gatorade Player of the Year for track and field three years in a row, once at Rio Mesa and twice at Thousand Oaks. She was the Track and Field News "High School Athlete of the Year" in 1991 and 1992. 

She was the third female athlete to achieve the title twice, immediately following Angela Burnham at Rio Mesa High School, who was the second to achieve the title twice.

She was invited to participate in the 1992 Olympic trials, and after her showing in the 200 meters finals, would have made the team as an alternate in the 4 × 100 meter relay, but she declined the invitation. 

After winning further state-wide sprint titles, she accepted a full scholarship to the University of North Carolina in basketball, where she helped the team win the NCAA championship in her freshman year. Jones redshirted her 1996 basketball season to concentrate on track but was injured and never got the opportunity to try out.

She excelled at her first major international competition, winning the 100 m sprint at the 1997 World Championships in Athens, while finishing 10th in the long jump. At the 1999 World Championships, Jones attempted to win four titles, but injured herself in the 200 m after a gold in the 100 m and a long jump bronze.

At the Sydney Olympics, Jones finished with three gold medals (100- and 200-meter sprint, and 4 × 400 m relay) and two bronze medals (long jump and 4 × 100 m relay). However, she was later stripped of these medals after admitting her use of performance-enhancing drugs. Jones vehemently denied using performance-enhancing drugs until her confession in 2007.

A dominant force in women's sprinting, Jones was upset in the 100 m sprint at the 2001 World Championships, as Ukrainian Zhanna Pintusevich-Block beat her for her first loss in the event in six years; Pintusevich-Block was one of the names revealed by Victor Conte during the BALCO scandals. Jones, however, did claim the gold in both the 200 m and 4 × 100 m relay.

On her 2004 Olympics experience, Jones said "It's extremely disappointing, words can't put it into perspective." She came in fifth in the long jump and competed in the women's 4x100 m relay where the team swept past the competition in the preliminaries only to miss a baton pass and finish last in the final race. Jones promised that her latest defeat would not be the end of her Olympic efforts, and reasserted in May 2005 that winning a gold medal at the 2008 Olympics remained her "ultimate goal."

May 2006 had Jones run 11.06 at altitude, but into a headwind in her season debut and beat Veronica Campbell and Lauryn Williams in subsequent 100 m events. By July 8, 2006, Jones appeared to be in top form; she won the 100 m sprint at Gaz de France with a time of 10.93 seconds. It was her fastest time in almost four years. Three days later, Jones once more improved on her seasonal best time at the Rome IIAF Golden League (10.91 seconds), but lost to Jamaica's Sherone Simpson, who clocked 10.87.

WNBA career

Marion Jones

Personal information

Born October 12, 1975 (age 49)

Los Angeles, California, U.S.

Listed height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)

Listed weight 150 lb (68 kg)

Career information

High school Thousand Oaks(Thousand Oaks, California)

College         North Carolina (1993–1997)

WNBA draft 2003: 3rd round, 33rd overall pick

Drafted by Phoenix Mercury

Playing career 2010–2011

Position         Point guard

Number         20

Career history

2010–2011 Tulsa Shock

Career highlights

• NCAA champion (1994)
• Third-team All-American – AP (1997)
• ACC tournament MVP (1997)
• 2 × First-team All-ACC (1995, 1997)
• ACC All-Freshman Team (1994)

In November 2009, Jones was working out for the San Antonio Silver Stars of the WNBA. She had played basketball while in college at the University of North Carolina, where her team won the national championship in 1994. Her No. 20 jersey, honored by the school, hangs in Carmichael Auditorium. She had been selected in the third round of the 2003 WNBA draft by the Phoenix Mercury. 

On March 10, 2010, the Tulsa Shock announced that Jones, a rookie, had signed to play with the team. Jones made her debut on May 15, in the Shock's inaugural game at the BOK Center against the Minnesota Lynx. On August 22, 2010, she logged her first start and scored a WNBA career high 15 points in a win against the Chicago Sky. In 47 WNBA games, Jones averaged 2.6 points and 1.3 rebounds per game. Jones was waived by the Shock on July 21, 2011.

Personal life

While at UNC, Jones met and began dating one of the track coaches, shot putter C. J. Hunter. Hunter voluntarily resigned from his position at UNC to comply with the requirements of university rules prohibiting coach-athlete dating. Jones and Hunter were married on October 3, 1998, and trained for the Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics.

In the run-up to the 2000 Olympics, Jones declared that she intended to win gold medals in all five of her competition events at Sydney. Jones's husband, C. J. Hunter, had withdrawn from the shotput competition for a knee injury, though he was allowed to keep his coaching credentials and attend the games to support his wife. Just hours after Marion Jones won her first of the planned five golds, though, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that Hunter had failed four pre-Olympic drug tests, testing positive each time for the banned anabolic steroid nandrolone. 

Hunter was immediately suspended from taking any role at the Sydney games, and he was ordered to surrender his on-field coaching credentials. 

At a press conference where Hunter broke down in tears, he denied taking any performance-enhancing drugs, much less the easily detected nandrolone. Jones would later write in her autobiography, Marion Jones: Life in the Fast Lane, that Hunter's positive drug tests hurt their marriage and her image as a drug-free athlete. The couple divorced in 2002.

On June 28, 2003, Jones gave birth to a son, Tim Montgomery Jr., with then-boyfriend Tim Montgomery, a world-class sprinter himself. Because of her pregnancy, Jones missed the 2003 World Championships, but spent a year preparing for the 2004 Olympics. 

Montgomery, who did not qualify for the 2004 Olympic track-and-field team for poor performance, was charged by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), as part of the investigation into the BALCO doping scandal, with receiving and using banned performance-enhancing drugs. 

The USADA sought a four-year suspension for Montgomery. Montgomery fought the ban, but lost the appeal on December 13, 2005, receiving a two-year ban from track-and-field competition; the Court of Arbitration for Sport also stripped Montgomery of all race results, records, and medals, from March 31, 2001, onward. Montgomery later announced his retirement.

On February 24, 2007, Jones married Barbadian sprinter and 2000 Olympic 100 m bronze medalist Obadele Thompson. Jones has two children with Thompson. Thompson and Jones divorced in 2017. Jones now resides in Austin, Texas with her long-time partner.

In 2010, Jones released a book, On the Right Track: From Olympic Downfall to Finding Forgiveness and the Strength to Overcome and Succeed, published by Simon & Schuster. Jones is now a full-time public speaker, trainer and coach. In 2024 Jones partnered with Driven Inc to launch Driven performance which focuses on building resilience skills through coaching and physical fitness.

Top Speed film

Jones appears in the 2003 film Top Speed, along with other speed specialists such as racing driver Lucas Luhr, mountain biker Marla Streb, and Porsche Cayenne designer Stephen Murkett. Directed by Greg MacGillivray and shot in IMAX format, the film covers details from races to mistakes she made within her performances.

Use of illicit performance-enhancing drugs

Throughout most of her athletic career including two Olympiads and several championship meets, Jones had been accused, either directly or by implication, of taking performance-enhancing drugs. These accusations began in high school in the early 1990s, when she missed a random drug test and was consequently banned for four years from track and field competition. 

Jones, a minor, claimed that she never received the letter notifying her of the required test; and attorney Johnnie Cochran successfully got the four-year ban overturned. Jones tended to train with both coaches and athletes who themselves were dogged by rumors and accusations surrounding performance-enhancing drugs. 

And until 2007, Jones denied, in almost every way possible and in almost any venue where the question arose, being involved with performance enhancers. She frequently said that she had never tested positive for performance-enhancing substances.

BALCO investigation

On December 3, 2004, Victor Conte, the founder of BALCO, appeared in an interview with Martin Bashir on ABC's 20/20. In the interview, Conte told a national audience that he had personally given Jones four different illegal performance-enhancing drugs before, during, and after the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. 

In the course of investigative research, San Francisco-based reporters Lance Williams and Mark Fainaru-Wada reported Jones had received banned drugs from BALCO, citing documentary evidence and testimony from Jones's ex-husband C.J. Hunter, who claims to have seen Jones inject herself in the stomach with the steroids.

According to Hunter's 2004 testimony before a federal grand jury, Jones's use of banned drugs began well before Sydney. Hunter told the investigators that Jones first obtained EPO (erythropoietin) from Graham, who Hunter said had a Mexican connection for the drug. 

Later, Hunter said, Graham met Conte, who began providing the coach with BALCO "nutritional supplements", which were actually an experimental class of "designer" steroids said to be undetectable by drug screening procedures available at the time. Graham then distributed the performance enhancers to Jones and other Sprint Capitol athletes. Subsequently, Hunter told federal agents Jones began receiving drugs directly from Conte.

Jones had never failed a drug test using the then-existing testing procedures, and insufficient evidence was found to bring charges regarding other untested performance-enhancing drugs.

2006 EPO tests

The Washington Post, citing unidentified sources with knowledge of drug results from the USA Track and Field Championships in Indianapolis, reported that on June 23, 2006, an "A" sample of Marion Jones's urine tested positive for erythropoietin (EPO), a banned performance enhancer. Jones withdrew from the Weltklasse Golden League meet in Switzerland, citing "personal reasons", and once more denied using performance-enhancing drugs. 

She retained lawyer Howard Jacobs, who had represented many athletes in doping cases, including Tim Montgomery and cyclist Floyd Landis. On September 6, 2006, Jones's lawyers announced that her "B" sample had tested negative, which cleared her from the doping allegations.

Admission of lying during BALCO investigation

On October 5, 2007, Jones admitted to lying to federal agents under oath about her steroids use prior to the 2000 Summer Olympics and pleaded guilty at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (in White Plains). 

She confessed to Judge Kenneth M. Karas that she had made false statements regarding the BALCO and a check-fraud case. She was released on her own recognizance but was required to surrender both her U.S. and Belizean passports, pending sentencing in January. Although a maximum sentence of five years could be imposed, the prosecution recommended no more than six months as part of Jones's plea bargain.

After her admission, Jones held a press conference on the same day, where she publicly admitted to using steroids before the Olympics and acknowledged that she had, in fact, lied when she previously denied steroid use in statements to the press, to various sports agencies, and to two grand juries. One was impaneled to investigate the BALCO "designer steroid" ring, and the other was impaneled to investigate a check fraud ring involving many of the same parties from the BALCO case.

 As a result of these admissions, Jones accepted a two-year suspension from track and field competition issued by USADA and announced her retirement from track and field. She broke down into tears during the press conference as she apologized for her actions, saying: "And so it is with a great amount of shame, that I stand before you and tell you that I have betrayed your trust... and you have the right to be angry with me. I have let them down. I have let my country down. And I have let myself down."

USADA stated that their sanction "also requires disqualification of all her competitive results obtained after September 1, 2000, and forfeiture of all medals, results, points and prizes". On January 11, 2008, Jones was sentenced to six months in jail. She began her sentence on March 7, 2008, and was released on September 5, 2008.

In the BALCO case, she had denied to federal agents her use of the steroid tetrahydrogestrinone, known as "The Clear", or "THG", from 1999, but claimed she was given the impression she was taking a flaxseed oil supplement for two years while coach Trevor Graham supplied her with the substance. 

In a published letter in October 2007, Jones said that she had used the substance that was given to her described as flaxseed oil, which was later confirmed to be "The Clear" until she stopped training with Graham at the end of 2002. She said she lied when federal agents questioned her in 2003 because she panicked when they presented her with a sample of "The Clear".

U.S. Olympic Committee demands return of Olympic medals

Peter Ueberroth, chairman of the U.S. Olympic Committee, reacted to the news of Jones's confession and guilty plea on perjury charges by issuing a statement calling on Jones to "immediately step forward and return the Olympic medals she won while competing in violation of the rules". Ueberroth added that her admission was "long overdue and underscores the shame and dishonor that are inherent with cheating." IAAF president Lamine Diack said in a statement: "Marion Jones will be remembered as one of the biggest frauds in sporting history."

On October 8, 2007, a source confirmed that Marion Jones surrendered her five medals from the 2000 Summer Olympics. On the same day, Ueberroth said that all the relay medals should be returned, and on April 10, 2008, the IOC voted to strip Jones's relay teammates of their medals as well, although this decision would successfully be appealed by seven of Jones's teammates and overturned in 2010.

Formal IOC disqualification

On December 12, 2007, the IOC formally stripped Jones of all five Olympic medals dating back to September 2000, and banned her from attending the 2008 Summer Olympics in any capacity. The IOC action also officially disqualified Jones from her fifth-place finish in the long jump at the 2004 Summer Olympics.

On October 28, 2008, Jones was interviewed by Oprah Winfrey and stated that she would have won gold at the Sydney Olympics without the drugs that led to her disgrace.

Financial troubles

Seven years after winning a women's record five Olympic track and field medals and receiving multimillion-dollar endorsement deals, Jones was broke. According to the Associated Press, Jones was heavily in debt and fighting off court judgments, according to court records reviewed by the Los Angeles Times. 

In 2006, a bank foreclosed on her $2.5 million mansion in Apex, North Carolina. In her prime, Jones was one of track's first female sports millionaires, typically earning between $70,000 and $80,000 a race, plus at least another $1 million from race bonuses and endorsement deals.

Involvement in check fraud

In July 2006, Jones was linked to a check-counterfeiting scheme that led to criminal charges against her coach and former boyfriend Montgomery. Documents showed that a $25,000 check made out to Jones was deposited in her bank account as part of the alleged multimillion-dollar scheme. 

Prosecutors alleged that funds were sent to Jones's track coach, 1976 Olympic gold medalist Steve Riddick, in Virginia, then funneled back to New York through a network of "friends, relatives and associates." Riddick was arrested in February on money-laundering charges. According to the indictment and subsequent documents filed with the court, the link to Jones was made through one of Riddick's business partners, Nathaniel Alexander.

On October 5, 2007, Jones pleaded guilty to making false statements to IRS Special Agent Jeff Novitzky leading the ongoing BALCO investigation in California. Jones claimed she had never taken performance-enhancing drugs. "That was a lie, your honor", she said from the defense table. The federal government, through grand juries, had been investigating steroid abuse since 2003.

Jones also pleaded guilty to making false statements about her knowledge of a check-cashing scheme to New York U.S. Department of Homeland Security Special Agent Erik Rosenblatt, who has been leading a broad financial investigation that has already convicted Montgomery, sports agent Charles Wells, and her coach, Steve Riddick.

Criminal sentencing

Prosecutors told U.S. District Judge Kenneth Karas that any sentence between probation and six months' imprisonment would be fair (with the maximum penalty being five years in prison); Karas responded by seeking advice as to whether he could go beyond the six-month sentence. 

Meanwhile, Jones's lawyers asked that her penalty be limited to probation and community service, arguing, in part, that she had been punished enough by apologizing publicly, retiring from track and field, and relinquishing her five Olympic medals.

On January 11, 2008, Karas sentenced Jones to six months in jail for her involvement in the check fraud case and her use of performance-enhancing drugs. During the sentencing hearing, the judge admonished her, saying that she knew what she was doing and would be punished accordingly. "The offenses here are serious. They each involve lies made three years apart", Karas said, adding that Jones's actions were "not a one-off mistake...but a repetition in an attempt to break the law."

Jones was ordered to surrender on March 15, 2008. She reported four days early, on March 11, at the Federal Medical Center, Carswell prison in Fort Worth and was assigned Federal Bureau of Prisons register no. 84868–054. She was released from prison on September 5, 2008.

Post-scandal

Jones appeared in season 3 of Special Forces: World's Toughest Test where she was medically withdrawn during the third episode.

Carmelita Jeter

 COPYRIGHT FROM WIKIPEDIA

Carmelita Jeter born November 24, 1979 is a retired American sprinter, who competed in the 60 metres, 100 m and 200 m. For over a decade, between 2009 and 2021, Jeter was called the "Fastest woman alive" after running a 100 m personal best of 10.64 seconds at the 2009 Shanghai Golden Grand Prix. In the 100 m, she was the 2011 world champion and the 2012 Olympic silver medalist.

She won the 100 m bronze at the 2007 World Championships in Athletics and a gold at the World Athletics Final. She won a second World Championship bronze in 2009. Her personal best of 10.64 s makes her the fourth fastest woman ever in the 100 m, behind Florence Griffith Joyner's long-standing world record, Elaine Thompson-Herah's 10.54 seconds and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce's 10.60 seconds.

In May 2023, she was named the new head coach of the track & field and cross country programs at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV).

Early life

Jeter was born on 24 November 1979. Jeter's early life was steeped in sports, with her father creating a basketball court in their front yard to keep the neighborhood kids active. This environment fostered her competitive spirit and love for athletics. Her mother supported her endeavors, attending meets on weekends, while her father rearranged his work schedule to cheer her on from the sidelines .

Jeter attended Bishop Montgomery High School in Torrance, California. Initially, basketball was the preferred sport in her family, and her younger brother, Eugene, later joined the Sacramento Kings. Her basketball coach suggested that she try out track, and an 11.7-second run confirmed her natural talent for sprinting. 

Jeter graduated from California State University, Dominguez Hills, which is located in Carson, California, with a bachelor's degree in physical education. Jeter set the record for most NCAA medals by a CSUDH track athlete and became the university's first U.S. Olympic Trials qualifier. A recurring hamstring problem kept her out of competition for much of 2003–05, and it was not until 2007 that she made her first impact in senior track and field athletics, having undergone treatment with deep tissue massage.

In 2012, Jeter faced the loss of her aunt, Brenda Washington, to breast cancer. This personal tragedy deeply affected her, and she honored her aunt's memory by becoming an ambassador for Susan G. Komen's California Circle of Promise Initiative, aiming to raise breast cancer awareness among African American women .

International success

In 2007, Jeter won a silver medal in the 60 meters at the USA Indoor Track and Field Championships with a personal best of 7.17 seconds, and she remained in good form, improving her 100 m best to 11.04 seconds to take fourth place in the 100 m at the Adidas Track Classic. 

Building upon this, she qualified for her first major competition by finishing third at the national championships behind Torri Edwards and Lauryn Williams.[8] She went on to win the bronze medal at the World Championships in a personal best time of 11.02 seconds, as well as taking the 100 m gold at the 2007 World Athletics Final.

The following year, she competed at the 100 and 200 m U.S. Olympic trials. Although she set a 100 m best of 10.97 seconds in the quarter-finals, she did not progress beyond the semifinals, finishing just two hundredths out of the qualifying positions. 

A sixth-place finish in the 200 m meant she had not made the 2008 Summer Olympics team, despite being one of the favourites for selection. She qualified for the 100 and 200 m races at the 2008 World Athletics Final, but only managed fourth and fifth place, respectively. She changed coach in November, deciding to work with John Smith, who had previously coached athletes such as Maurice Greene. Smith began completely remodelling Jeter's running style.

In her 2009 season, she showed strong performances going into the 2009 World Championships in Athletics. She ran 7.11 seconds in the 60 m in the indoor season, the fastest by any athlete that year and a personal best. She remained in-form in her outdoor season, recording a fast 10.96 seconds at the Mt. SAC Relays, winning gold at the 2009 Nike Prefontaine Classic, and taking her first national title at the 2009 U.S. Outdoor Championships. 

At the 2009 London Grand Prix, she placed first in the 100 m, clocking a personal best of 10.92; it was the third-fastest time at that point of the season, only slower than Jamaica's Shelly-Ann Fraser and Kerron Stewart. A week prior to the start of the World Championships, Jeter was part of a United States 4 × 100 m relay team that ran the fastest women's sprint relay in twelve years. Lauryn Williams, Allyson Felix, Muna Lee, and Jeter finished with a time of 41.58 seconds, bringing them to eighth on the all-time list.

At the 2009 World Athletics Championships, in Berlin, Jeter was one of the favorites for the gold medal as a 10.83-second personal best in the semis made her the fastest qualifier for the final. She ended up with her second World Championship bronze medal in the 100 m, however, finishing a tenth of a second behind Fraser and Stewart. The races after the championships proved more successful: she beat strong opposition in the IAAF Golden League meets in Zurich and Brussels with two sub-10.90 runs.

Jeter was also selected to run as part of the US relay team as the anchor runner. However, in their heat, during the change over between Alexandria Anderson and Muna Lee, Lee horrifically injured her leg which caused elimination from the relay event. Jamaica eventually claimed the gold medals.

She entered the 2009 IAAF World Athletics Final having won her last three races by a significant margin. Even taking this into account, Jeter surprised with one of the highlights of the final edition of the IAAF World Athletics Final. She won the 100 m race in Thessaloniki, Greece with a time of 10.67, to become the third fastest woman in history and set a championship record. 

This was the fastest run in twelve years; a time which had only been bettered by Marion Jones and Florence Griffith-Joyner, and 0.16 seconds faster than Jeter had ever run before. She ran even faster a week later at the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix, winning in 10.64 seconds (the fourth fastest time ever) to become the second fastest woman outright.

Her fast times were a double-edged sword in that they brought as much suspicion as they did appreciation. At age 30, Jeter had improved her personal record by over a third of a second within a single season and she ranked between Jones and Griffith-Joyner in the all-time lists. 

Given the history of the women's sprints and speculation about performance-enhancing drug use, Jeter said "I can't be upset about those questions but It's unfortunate that I work this hard and I don't get the credit I should get". 

She improved her 60 m best to 7.02 seconds to win at the USA Indoor Track and Field Championships. This was still slower than LaVerne Jones-Ferrette, and Jeter resolved to improve further for the 2010 IAAF World Indoor Championships.

She retired in 2017 after injury prevented her from competing in the 2016 Olympics.

As of the latest available information, Carmelita Jeter is not married and does not have children. She has been in a relationship with Jason McGee, though they have not publicly confirmed the nature of their relationship . Jeter maintains a private personal life, focusing public attention on her athletic achievements and coaching career.

Sha'Carri Richardson

 

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Sha'Carri Richardson  born March 25, 2000) is an American track and field sprinter who competes in the 100 metres and 200 metres. Richardson rose to fame in 2019 as a freshman at Louisiana State University, running 10.75 seconds to break the 100 m collegiate record at the NCAA Division I Championships. This winning time made her one of the ten fastest women in history at 19 years old.

In April 2021, Richardson ran a new personal best of 10.72 seconds, becoming the sixth-fastest woman of all time (at the time) and the fourth-fastest American woman in history. She qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics after winning the women's 100-metre dash with 10.86 in the United States Olympic Trials. 

On July 1, it was reported that Richardson had tested positive for cannabis use following her 100 m final at the U.S. Trials, invalidating her win and making her ineligible to compete in the 100 m at the Olympics. 

After successfully completing a counseling program, she accepted a one-month period of ineligibility that began on June 28, 2021. In July 2023, she became the US national champion in the women's 100 metres at the 2023 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, running 10.82 seconds

Richardson won gold in the 100 m at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, beating Shericka Jackson and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in a new championships record time of 10.65 seconds. On the penultimate day of the 2023 World Championships, she also won gold as part of Team USA in the women's 4 × 100 m relay final with a championship record of 41.03 seconds. 

On June 22, 2024, Richardson defended her title as the US national champion in the 100-metre sprint event by winning the women's 100 m final in 10.71 seconds (WL), qualifying for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France, where she won the silver medal in the 100 m and gold in the 4 × 100 relay.

Childhood and early career

Richardson was born in Dallas, Texas. She is of African-American descent. She was raised by her grandmother, Betty Harp, and an aunt. She graduated from Carter High School, where she ran track and won Texas state titles in the 100 m and 200 m.

2016–2017: Junior career

As a teenager, Richardson won the 100 m title at the AAU Junior Olympics — the largest national multi-sport event for youth in the United States — in 2016, then another title at the USATF Junior Olympics in 2017. She made her international debut at the 2017 Pan American U20 Athletics Championships, where she won a gold medal in the 4 × 100 meter relay alongside Gabriele Cunningham, Rebekah Smith, and Tara Davis.

2018–2019: Louisiana State University

In 2018, Richardson enrolled at Louisiana State University and began competing for the LSU Lady Tigers track and field team. She was a finalist in the 60-meter dash at the 2019 NCAA Division I Indoor Championships.

At the 2019 NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships, the 19-year-old completed the second-best female one-day double in history after Merlene Ottey, breaking two world U20 records. She won the 100 m with a time of 10.75 s, setting a collegiate record and improving Marlies Göhr's 42-year-old world U20 best. In the 200 m, she placed runner-up by less than one hundredth of a second in a time of 22.17 s, breaking Allyson Felix's record set at the 2004 Athens Olympics. She also ran in the 4 × 100 m relay which finished second.

Four days after the NCAA Championships, she announced she would forgo collegiate eligibility after her first year, and sign a professional contract. She trains with former Olympic sprinter Dennis Mitchell and is sponsored by Nike.

Professional career

2020: Tokyo Olympics and suspension

Richardson qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics with a 100-meter time of 10.77 seconds at the 2020 United States Olympic Trials. It was 0.13 seconds faster than Javianne Oliver, who finished second. A urine sample that she submitted tested positive for THC metabolites indicating recent cannabis use, which put her participation in the Olympics in doubt. 

After successfully completing a counseling program, she accepted a one-month suspension by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) that began on June 28, 2021. While Richardson was ineligible for the Olympic 100 meters due to the suspension ending on July 27, 2021, she could have been eligible for the Women's 4 × 100 relay scheduled for August 5, 2021. However, she was not selected, thereby missing the Olympics entirely.

Richardson stated that she took the drug to cope with the pressure of qualifying for the Olympics while mourning the recent death of her biological mother. Her suspension was criticized by many individuals and organizations in favor of liberalizing cannabis policies, including NORML, members of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, and other members of Congress. U.S. President Joe Biden also suggested that drug-testing rules governing athletes could be changed. 

USADA responded to the criticism by pointing out that as a signatory to the World Anti-Doping Code, it has an obligation to enforce it in the United States. Furthermore, they stated that changing those rules might be problematic, as the vast majority of the world's nation states consider consuming marijuana a criminal offense. 

In response to the controversy, in September 2021, the World Anti-Doping Agency announced that it would conduct a review regarding the prohibited status of cannabis. Cannabis has remained a prohibited drug for Olympic athletes since 1999, though in 2013 the World Anti-Doping Agency increased the level of THC metabolite allowed from 15 ng/mL to 150 ng/mL.

Richardson returned to the track at the 2021 Prefontaine Classic, placing ninth – last place – with a time of 11.14 seconds. The Tokyo medalists, Jamaicans Elaine Thompson-Herah, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Shericka Jackson, repeated their placements.

2023: World Champion

On April 8, 2023, she ran the fourth-fastest 100 m by a woman in all conditions, clocking 10.57 seconds with a strong, illegal 4.1 m/s tailwind to win the women's final at the Miramar Invitational. It converts to 10.77 s in still conditions. In May 2023, she secured her first Diamond League victory, winning the 100 m in Doha with a new meeting record of 10.76 s (+0.9 m/s).

In July 2023, Richardson participated at the 2023 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon. On July 7, 2023, Richardson became the US national champion in the 100-metre sprint event by winning the women's 100 m final in 10.82 seconds, qualifying for the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest. 

On the third day of the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, she won her first major individual title on the international stage, winning gold in the women's 100-metre sprint event in a championship record of 10.65 seconds. On August 25, 2023, she won bronze in the women's 200 m final in 21.92 seconds, finishing behind USA teammate Gabrielle Thomas (21.81), and defending women's 200 m world champion Shericka Jackson (21:41 CR). 

She would also go on to win gold as part of Team USA in the women's 4 × 100 m relay final with a championship record of 41.03 seconds. Her relay time of 9.65 seconds was the fastest in history. Sha'Carri's teammates in this event were Tamari Davis, Twanisha Terry, and Gabrielle Thomas.

2024: Paris Olympics

Richardson began her 2024 season competing in the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon in May, winning in a time of 10.83 seconds. Coincidentally, Elaine Thompson-Herah, the winner of this Diamond League meeting in 2021, finished in last place with a time of 11.30 seconds.

"I feel great about my race. I feel like I'm continuing to grow and develop into a mature young lady and a mature athlete", Richardson told the media following her victory.

At the 2024 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon, Richardson defended her title in the women's 100-meter sprint event, winning the final in 10.71 seconds on June 22, 2024, and qualifying for the event at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. She did not qualify for the 200 m, however, finishing fourth in the final of the qualifier.

At the Olympics 100 m Richardson finished second behind Saint Lucia's Julien Alfred, who had a faster start out of the blocks and never relinquished her lead. In the women's 4 × 100 relay, Richardson ran the race's anchor leg; after a shaky handoff from teammate Gabrielle Thomas, Richardson propelled the U.S. women from third place to first, clinching her first Olympic gold medal. Before crossing the finish line, Richardson turned her head to stare down her closest competitors in one of the game's iconic moments.

Personal life

In 2021, a week before her qualifying race for the 2020 Summer Olympics, Richardson's biological mother died. She knew nothing of her mother's death until she was asked about it by a reporter.

Richardson is noted for her long nails and colorful hair on the field, and she has stated that her style is inspired by that of Florence Griffith-Joyner.

Richardson is sponsored by Nike. She wore Nike's Air Zoom Maxfly spikes at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest.

In 2021, Richardson stated that she has a girlfriend. She gave a Twitter shout-out to the LGBTQ community immediately after her win in June 2021. Richardson identifies as bisexual. In 2025, she was rumored to be dating fellow track athlete Christian Coleman.