American sprint stars Sha'Carri Richardson and Christian Coleman have won their 120-metre heats at the Stawell Gift, both starting from scratch. Richardson dominated the women's field, while Coleman edged John Howe by 0.01 seconds in a tighter men's heat.
Richardson, a silver medallist in the 100 metres and gold medallist in the 4x100 metres relay at the 2024 Paris Olympics, expressed confidence in becoming the third woman to win the Stawell Gift final from scratch. She won her heat in 13.815 seconds, ahead of Lilliana Hoffman (14.060), who started 7.25 metres ahead.
“It reminded me what track and field feels like; love, respect and also fun. I'm having a lot of fun out here with everybody,” Richardson told Channel Seven. “It felt like being a kid again playing tag. I had a great time and it just kind of woke my body up.”
Neither Richardson nor Coleman, who are in a relationship, were the fastest qualifiers. Charlotte Nielsen, running off 9 metres, posted the fastest women's heat time at 13.32 seconds, while Olufemi Komolafe's 12.11 seconds off 5 metres was the fastest men's time.
Richardson and Coleman will compete in the semifinals from midday (AEST) on Monday, with the women's final at 1:45pm and the men's final at 2:20pm.
