Sha'Carri Richardson explains viral staredown at Paris Olympics

You've probably seen Sha'Carri Richardson's viral photo from the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The photo shows Richardson looking confidently to the right on her way to an Olympic gold medal in the 4×100-meter relay, the first gold medal of Richardson's career after winning a silver medal in the 100-meter final. Looking down, called “Shar'Carri Stare”, fascinated the nation even more than the gold that followed.

“I looked over and just knew that no matter what happened, there was no one I was going to let — not even myself — get ahead of me,” Richardson said in an interview with Refinery29 published Tuesday. “I wasn't even going to allow myself to not cross the finish line first and not get the medal, or let those ladies down and the support we received when we crossed the finish line first as Team USA.”

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Richardson ran the final leg for Team USA — consisting of Richardson, Gabby Thomas, Melissa Jefferson and Twanisha Terry — in the 4×100-meter relay. Richardson received the baton from Thomas in third place, but Richardson ran a dominant final leg to secure the gold. As she approached the finish line, Richardson looked over at the sprinters from Great Britain and Germany, who finished second and third in the relay, respectively.