Shahari Richardson was shocked to miss the 100m at the World Championships in Athletics the following month, while Fred Kerley set the fastest time over the same distance this year, sending a strong signal to his rivals.
At Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, home of the World Championship, Richardson’s failure was one of the biggest surprises on the first day after she finished fifth in her group in qualifying with a time of 11.31 seconds to finish 23rd. place in the overall standings.
Two weeks ago in New York, she scored 10.85 and placed second in the final to prove her readiness for the challenge. Shakari made a splash last year at Hayward Field during the US Olympic Trials when she clocked 10.64 seconds (wind assisted) in the semi-final before winning the final. But last summer, she was denied entry to the Tokyo Olympics for marijuana use.
The 22-year-old will now try to focus on finishing in the top three in the 200m over the weekend to qualify for her first professional world championship.
Among the men, Fred Curley set the fastest time in the 100m this year with a qualifying 9.83s ahead of Crafont Charleston (10.07s).
Thus, Kerli, the silver medalist of the Olympic Games in Tokyo, surpassed the result of 9.85 seconds, achieved by the Kenyan Ferdinand Omanyala in Nairobi on May 7.
As for Christian Coleman, the guarantor of his qualification for the World Championship scheduled for July 15-24 as the 2019 Doha World Championship title holder, he advanced to the next round with a time of 10.08 seconds.
But the 26-year-old has confirmed he plans to go through every round of testing in his quest to get back up to par after missing the Tokyo Olympics due to an 18-month ban for three missed doping tests.
“Although the 100m is the shortest race in athletics, it seems easy, but I feel it is very difficult… You have to be perfect at this level,” he said.
Sidney McLaughlin, Olympic champion in Tokyo and world record holder in the 400m hurdles, set the fastest time in the first round with a time of 54.11 seconds.
Dalila Muhammad, Olympic and 2016 world champion in Rio de Janeiro, is absent from the American Trials with a right hip sprain, knowing she is the guarantor of her presence at the world wedding.
As for Alison Felix, a seven-time Olympic gold medalist who hopes to compete in the World Championships for her eighth and final time before retiring later this year, she led her group in the 400m with a time of 52.30s. to advance to the next round.
Source: El Iktisad