Olympic gold medallist Sha’Carri Richardson was arrested for physically assaulting her boyfriend at an airport. The pair had a dispute at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Washington State, and security footage of the altercation led to Richardson’s detention.
Richardson was caught on camera repeatedly shoving her boyfriend, famed sprinter Christian Coleman, on July 27. In the newly released video, she even shoved him into a wall and hurled an item at his head. Moments before their dispute physically escalated, 25-year-old Richardson is seen confronting 29-year-old Coleman after yanking the backpack he is wearing.
Throughout the video, obtained by TMZ Sports, Coleman consistently walks away from Richardson to seemingly diffuse the situation. However, Richardson pursues him and ultimately gets physical with him.
After getting shoved and pushed into the wall, Coleman was almost hit with an item that Richardson appears to throw at him while at a checkpoint.
According to TMZ, citing police documents, officers arrived at the scene after the altercation. When they spoke with Richardson, she stated that the dispute had begun because Coleman had taken her electronic headphones. She also insisted it was only a verbal disagreement and denied assaulting him.
Authorities later reviewed the surveillance footage and arrested the athlete. The American athlete was formally charged with fourth-degree assault. She was held in police custody for about 18 hours.
Coleman addressed the incident publicly on August 4, describing it as a “sucky situation”. While acknowledging it, he defended Richardson, expressing that a legal penalty was unnecessary. “I don’t feel like she should have been arrested. People have emotions and stuff like that, and she has things she has to work on for herself. So do I, so do you,” he said.
Richardson has not yet issued a public statement about the arrest. While the exact date of when they started dating is unclear, rumours started circulating that they were romantically involved in 2023. Richardson and Coleman, who is widely regarded as one of the fastest sprinters in the world, went public with their relationship in February 2025.
