Sha’Carri Richardson Arrested After Airport Incident with Boyfriend

EUGENE, Ore. — Sha’Carri Richardson was arrested Sunday at Seattle Tacoma International Airport following an altercation with her boyfriend, fellow sprinter Christian Coleman, according to a police report from the Port of Seattle Police Department.

The incident occurred on July 27, before Richardson was set to compete at the U.S. National Track and Field Championships. She was involved in a heated argument with Coleman at the TSA security checkpoint. An officer on duty noted that Richardson shoved Coleman multiple times as he attempted to leave the area, which led to her arrest for fourth-degree domestic violence assault.

Coleman informed the officer that he and Richardson had been dating for two years, although they only went public with their relationship in February. After being taken into custody, Richardson remained at SCORE South Correctional Entity for nearly 19 hours before the case was cleared.

Coleman later declined to press charges, stating he did not wish to be considered a victim. The report indicated that security footage corroborated the officer’s account of the events, showing Richardson following Coleman closely and pushing him hard enough to cause him to stumble into a nearby column.

Both athletes had competed in preliminary rounds earlier that week, with Richardson clocking in at 11.07 seconds in the women’s 100-meter event, while Coleman recorded 10.08 seconds in his heat. They both advanced to the finals, but Richardson decided to withdraw from the 100-meter competition. As the reigning world champion, she already has an automatic bid for the upcoming World Championships in Tokyo.

Richardson expressed a positive outlook after her preliminary race, saying, “Right now, I’m cruising under the radar, but when it’s time to hit — it’s gonna be a bang where y’all see my name.” However, she opted out of competing in the 200 meters as well, which is scheduled for Saturday. There has been no comment from USA Track and Field regarding the incident.