Citing fair play, USATF leaves Sha'Carri Richardson off the US Olympic team

USATF, the organization managing the United States hopes for gold medals in Track and Field at the Olympics has determined that giving Sha'Carri Richardson a discretionary spot on the team would be unfair to the other competitors.

While the relay takes place after Richardson's suspension is up, it sounds as if Richardson had a spot on the relay team but the suspension wiped out her results.

LA Times:

In a statement, USATF said it was "incredibly sympathetic toward Sha'Carri Richardson's extenuating circumstances" and "fully agrees" that international rules regarding marijuana should be reevaluated.

"So while our heartfelt understanding lies with Sha'Carri, we must also maintain fairness for all of the athletes who attempted to realize their dreams by securing a place on the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Team," the statement read.

In this case, that meant offering the remaining relay spots to the sixth- and seventh-place finishers, each of whom moved up in the pecking order after Richardson's DQ. They are English Gardner and Aliea Hobbs.

Richardson tested positive for a chemical found in marijuana after her victory on June 19. She said the stress of her biological mother's recent death combined with the pressure of preparing for trials led her to use the drug.