American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson’s redemption tour has her at the starting blocks as the betting favorite in the Women’s 100m at the 2024 Olympic Games.
After breezing through qualifying, Richardson is an overwhelming -370 favorite in the Olympic odds to claim her first gold medal after unceremoniously getting bounced from Tokyo 2020 for using cannabis.
While the field isn’t as formidable, there are still challengers to the crown in our Women’s 100m Final predictions for Saturday, August 3.
Women's 100m Final odds
| Name | Odds |
|---|---|
| Sha'Carri Richardson (USA) | -310 |
| Julien Alfred (STL) | +430 |
Odds prior to semifinals.
| Name | Odds |
|---|---|
| Melissa Jefferson (USA) | +1,300 |
| Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (JAM) | +1,600 |
| Tia Clayton (JAM) | +3,400 |
| Marie-Josee Ta Lou (CIV) | +5,500 |
| Dina Asher-Smith (GBR) | +5,500 |
| Twanisha Terry (USA) | +5,500 |
Odds prior to semifinals.
| Name | Odds |
|---|---|
| Darryl Neita (GBR) | +10,000 |
| Zoe Hobbs (NZL) | +10,000 |
| Torrie Lewis (AUS) | +10,000 |
| Gina Bass (GAM) | +10,000 |
| Ewa Swoboba (POL) | +12,000 |
| Rosemary Chukwuma (NGL) | +12,000 |
| Gina Luckenkemper (GER) | +19,000 |
| Patrizia van der Weken (LUX) | +19,000 |
| Audrey Leduc (CAN) | +19,000 |
| Zaynab Dosso (ITA) | +19,000 |
| Mujinga Kambundji (SUI) | +20,000 |
| Ella Connolly (AUS) | +20,000 |
Odds prior to semifinals.
Women's 100m Final prediction
My best bet
Melissa Jefferson to medal (+250)
My analysis
Sha'Carri Richardson’s rise to odds-on-favorite to capture the title of fastest woman on the planet stems from the fact that she’s posted the fastest time in the race this year at 10.71 seconds.
It’s also propped up because of who isn’t in the field. Defending Olympic champion Elaine Thompson-Herah is out with an Achilles injury, while fellow Jamaican sprinter Shericka Jackson withdrew from the event after suffering a calf injury in the leadup to Paris. She’ll focus solely on her 200m race.
Thompson-Herah owns the second-fastest time in history at 10.54, while Jackson clocked in at 10.65, a three-way tie for fifth, which includes Richardson.
Richardson’s likely top threat is St Lucia’s Julien Alfred, a 23-year-old who captured the World indoor title in the 60m, with wins on the 100m circuit in both Kingston and Monaco. Ivory Coast sprinter Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith also clocked a season-best in the qualifying heats at 10.87 and will be seeking her first podium in this race after running fourth in 2016 and 2021.
Meanwhile, veteran Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce is a two-time Olympic champion in the 100m (Bejing 2008 & London 2012), hitting the podium in four straight Olympics. Pryce showed good form in the heats, just five one-hundredths off of Ta Lou-Smith at 10.92.
If you are looking for upset potential, however, it might be coming out of the American camp in Michelle Jefferson.
A training partner with Richardson, she’s been an integral part of the Americans’ back-to-back world championship golds in the 4x100m relay. Jefferson asserted herself nicely in the leadup to Paris, putting up a 10.80 season best, which gives her a No. 3 ranking in Paris.
Much of this race will come down to the start. Richardson is likely the fastest person in the field when all runners are upright, but her work out of the blocks is average. Even then, as long as her start is not a total disaster, her top-end speed should be enough to take her to gold.
Unfortunately, that’s not a lot of betting juice to extract here, so I’d opt for Jefferson to find a spot on the podium, with the youngster likely having to work past the 37-year-old Pryce and 35-year-old Ta Lou-Smith to get there.
Women's 100m Final info
| Location: | Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France |
| Date: | Saturday, 8-3-2024 |
| Semifinals Start Time: | 1:50 p.m. ET |
| Final Start Time: | 3:20 p.m. ET |
| TV: | NBC |
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