Three-time Olympic champion Gail Devers has defended Sha’Carri Richardson, saying that while she did not win a gold medal for the United States at the Paris Olympics, she gave it her all.

Gail Devers explained that the gold medal will be back in the US at the LA 2028 Olympic Games, noting that Sha’Carri Richardson might have missed it in Paris but it will be reclaimed in LA. The last American woman to win an Olympic gold medal in the 100m was Devers who obliterated a strong field at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.

However, she believes American glory will be restored sooner by Sha’Carri Richardson or any other sprinter with the ability to get the job done.

“Sha’Carri came in second, so we’re looking forward and I think everything happens for a reason. And I say the reason she didn’t get it is that it’s supposed to come back in American soil in 2028 so it will be 32 years, and who knows who’s gonna be there. I think it doesn’t come easy, and it’s a target on your back once you get there. But it’s just about trusting and believing,” Gail Devers said in an interview with Athlos.

The American sprint legend added that she was impressed by Richardson’s performance on the Olympic stage. In the women’s 100, Sha’Carri Richardson claimed a silver medal, finishing second behind Saint Lucia’s Julien Alfred who won her country’s first-ever Olympic medal.

In the women’s 4x100m relay, Sha’Carri Richardson anchored Team USA to victory despite being handed over the baton a bit later than her other competitors.

“Oh absolutely, I’m always impressed with her everybody has a story and her story is one of resilience. When the chips are down, she finds a way to come back. She has support, and that’s what this meet is about- women bonding together, supporting each other. To be there for each other and to make it happen,” she added.

Sha’Carri Richardson opened up on her place to have a good cry

” If I’m back home and I just want to unwind and be to myself, I’m going to go to my home track from my high school because I’m just going back to my home track and sit there and take in the beginning and look at where I am now,” she said.