Let’s go back to the 2023 World Championships. Sha’Carri Richardson and Noah Lyles were on top of the world, having dominated their events. Two golds for Sha’Carri and three for Noah. So, coming into the Olympics this year, the expectations were quite high. But before they failed to accomplish part of their goals in Paris, a track and field legend had made a striking remark, one that seems to have resonated in a list that Sports Illustrated recently released
In April, Michael Johnson tweeted, “Reporter just said ‘track & field lacks personalities like [Usain] Bolt, Carl [Lewis], and you.’ My personality wasn’t nearly as exciting as Noah, Sha’Carri, Shelley-Ann, Karston, or Jakob. There isn’t a lack of personalities. Problem is the sport is no longer a platform for great personalities.” Lyles and Richardson may have the aura that athletes like Bolt and Flo Jo once possessed, but the sport isn’t the same anymore. So, when Sports Illustrated revealed its list of the 50 most influential figures and driving forces in sports this year, Sha’Carri (as an individual) and Noah didn’t make it. And after a season of ups and downs, their rather disappointing track record (no pun intended) seems to have continued… But before getting to the list, let’s go back a couple of days. And a couple of weeks.Regardless of the list’s ode to the LSU, this season has been a rollercoaster for Sha’Carri Richardson, which surely was deserving of a standalone nomination. Yes, she couldn’t quite end it on a high, one she certainly felt after the 4x100m final at the Olympics. At the Diamond League finals in Brussels, the 24-year-old settled for eighth place in the 100m with an 11.23, subsequently withdrawing from the 200m event the following day and ending her season. As for Noah Lyles, he didn’t make an appearance at all.At the Paris Games, Lyles contracted COVID-19 before the 200m final—the event he was most looking forward to, hoping to redeem himself after his bronze in Tokyo. However, he fell short yet again and had to settle for third with a time of 19.70. Due to his diagnosis, the 27-year-old withdrew from his last event—the 4x100m relay. Making an appearance at the US Open finals in New York, Lyles said, “I ended my season. We decided that after the COVID situation, we are just going to call it there
