Sha’Carri Richardson extends support to pole vault world record holder Mondo Duplantis for the World Athlete of the Year award
American athlete Sha’Carri Richardson has shown support to pole vault world record holder Mondo Duplantis after he was announced as a nominee for the World Athlete of the Year. On October 12, World Athletics shared the Swedish-American pole vaulter among 11 male athletes nominated for the same title.
The 23-year-old Mondo Duplantis currently holds the world outdoor and indoor records. At the 2023 Diamond League Finale in Eugene, he cleared a historic 6.23m in the first attempt to protect his world record-holder title. He had added one centimeter to his own world record that he set at the All-Star Perche 2023 event in February. This marked the seventh time he had broken the world record.
Mondo Duplantis is also the reigning Olympic champion, having won gold in Tokyo in 2020. He also won the 2023 world championship in Budapest with a record-setting 6.10m jump. Moreover, Duplantis has been the Diamond League winner for three consecutive years, from 2021 to 2023.
Given his impressive record of his prowess, Mondo Duplantis was a deserving nominee for World Athlete of the Year.
After Duplantis’s name was announced in the list, the Women’s World Athlete of the Year nominee, Sha’Carri Richardson expressed her support for him. She shared a picture of Mondo Duplantis posted on the official Instagram page of World Athletics.
Nevertheless, Mondo Duplantis is sharing the list of nominees with star athletes like Noah Lyles, Neeraj Chopra, Ryan Crouser, Kelvin Kiptum, and many others.
Sha’Carri Richardson’s deserving nomination in the Women’s World Athlete of the Year list
Undoubtedly, the 2023 season has been the rise of Sha’Carri Richardson. After facing a series of ups and downs in her personal and professional life in 2021 and 2022, the American athlete made a stunning comeback at the 2023 US National Championships. With an impressive speed of 10.82s in the 100m race, the 23-year-old qualified for the world championship for the first time in her career.
Richardson stood out as one of the star athletes in Budapest in August. She beat legendary athletes like Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and another Jamaican powerhouse Shericka Jackson, to win the 100m world title, clocking 10.65s. She also secured a bronze medal in the 200m race. Lastly, Richardson anchored the victory for Team USA in the women’s 4x100m relay race.
In her concluding race at the Diamond League Finale, Richardson achieved the fourth position in the 100m race, while her competitor Shericka Jackson took the gold medal.
However, Sha’Carri Richardson's outstanding performance this season has made her a tentative candidate to win the 2023 World Athlete of the Year.