Sha’Carri Richardson’s Beats commercial doesn’t make Olympic absence any less egregious

Although Sha’Carri Richardson was featured in a new Beats by Dre commercial with Kanye West, it doesn’t make her absence from the Tokyo Olympics any less infuriating.

In June, track and field athlete Sha’Carri Richardson was taking America by storm. Her fierce personality mirrored her intensity as a runner, helping her become a household name in the sport. Then, on June 19, she punched her ticket to the Olympic Games in Tokyo by winning the 100m at the Olympic Trials. Because of her blazing speed, many expected her to come away with multiple medals in Tokyo.

Unfortunately, Richardson was given a one-month suspension by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) after testing positive for marijuana after the Olympic trials. That suspension disqualified her for the 100m in the games, and her Tokyo dreams were officially dashed when she wasn’t selected for America’s women’s relay team.

She’s received an enormous amount of support since her positive test from many notable celebrities and athletes. The track star surprised many during the NBA Finals, starring in a new Beats by Dre commercial. Even though it is a huge moment for Richardson, it doesn’t make her absence in the Tokyo Olympics any less of a problem.

Sha’Carri Richardson’s Beats commercial reminds us that she deserved to be in the Olympics.

During Game 6 of the NBA Finals, Sha’Carri Richardson graced the screen during a commercial break as one of Beats by Dre’s newest athletes. The commercial was put together and edited by music artist Kanye West, and he used the song “No Child Left Behind” from his upcoming album “DONDA.” The commercial shows Richards in the starting blocks and preparing for what seems to be a race.

For Richardson, this is a big moment for her, as getting an endorsement from Beats is a big deal especially because so many high-profile athletes have appeared in their ads like LeBron James, Serena Williams, James Harden, and more. The exposure will help her brand, especially in an ad involving Kanye West. Additionally, the money and perks she has (or will) receive from it only add to the positives.

However, the commercial only reminds us of how she was robbed of her first opportunity to compete in the Olympics. It’s understandable if she tested positive for an actual performance-enhancing drug, but Richardson tested positive for THC, a chemical component in marijuana. The conversation surrounding marijuana has changed in recent years, as many athletes use it for pain management, emotional relief, and other things.

Richardson said she used marijuana to help herself cope with the death of her biological mother. She learned about the death just weeks before her Olympic Trials. Not to mention she used it in Oregon, a state that where it was legal to consume recreationally. Yet, she still had her chance at Olympic Gold ripped away from her.

The USADA is getting most of the heat for Richardson’s suspension, but people should turn their anger towards the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). They have implicitly conceded that athletes don’t use weed for competitive advantage but still penalize athletes for consuming it.

Just this year, the WADA considered drugs like heroin, ecstasy, cocaine and cannabis “substances of abuse” and not “performance enhancers.” They decided that suspensions for those drugs shouldn’t be the same as for performance enhancers. WADA spokesperson James Fitzgerald told Cycling Weekly that, “It was felt that the use of these drugs was often unrelated to sport performance,” per Sports Illustrated.

For one, athletes who use those drugs aren’t using them (and never used them) to cheat, so Fitzgerald states the obvious. Secondly, the fact that cannabis is still being mentioned in the same group as ecstasy, cocaine and heroin is absurd. The latter three drugs are considerably more dangerous and have much higher risks. Putting marijuana into a group with those other drugs is careless and lacks the due diligence of researching the individual effects of each substance.

The rules are the rules, but that doesn’t make them any less outdated. Richardson’s absence from the Tokyo Olympics because of a positive marijuana test is unfortunate and borderline stupid. She earned her way to the games and persevered through a close death to do so. Is her using marijuana to cope with a family death so criminal that should rob her of a chance to experience a life-changing event in the Olympics?

To the World Anti-Doping Agency and U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, yes, it is. But that shows how little the Olympics have learned about marijuana, its positive effects, and how their athletes feel about it. Instead, it seems like they are sticking to their age-old rules, and Richardson was a victim of that this summer.

The Beats commercial is great, and she deserved the ad. But she deserved her spot at the Tokyo Olympics even more; it’s as simple as that.