Double standards within sport against people of colour are not a novel phenomenon, nor are they something that have recently emerged. I will not pretend to be an expert on the Olympics, but this is a matter which goes beyond knowledge of sport and athletics. 

The banning of Sha’Carri Richardson from the Olympics due to her usage of marijuana containing THC, a substance that is currently on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) list of prohibited substances, highlights a deeper problem of systemic racial injustice. I do not think it would be productive to get into a deeper conversation of whether marijuana should still be on WADA’s list, rather, I want to highlight how the long-awaited 2020 Olympic games have contributed to discrimination against Black women.

Why am I emphasising Richardson’s case? I am sure many people would see no problem with her being disqualified from competing in the Olympics; after all, rules are rules and athletes are more than aware of the regulations surrounding prohibited substances. However, this issue becomes more complex when white Olympic gold medallists are praised by the mainstream media for utilising CBD products in their training. When white women are seen using CBD for training purposes, it is seen as socially acceptable; when a black woman is found using a different type of cannabinoid (THC) to cope with the death of her mother and the pressure induced by the need to succeed, she is demonised and disciplined for her actions.

The logic behind having marijuana on the WADA’s list of banned substances primarily derives from the notion that it has the potential to enhance performance, despite few studies showing this. I believe that the disqualification of Richardson highlights a deeper issue tightly bound in racial discrimination. Is it not ironic that Black people are disproportionately handed jail sentences for marijuana usage and possession, specifically in the U.S, while White people have been profiting off the legalisation of marijuana for the last decade? This parallel can be seen with the differential treatment of Richardson and Rapinoe, the White athlete who has recently been seen promoting CBD products as a way of amplifying her training. 

I do not see this comparison as being a stretch, nor an exaggeration. This gross double standard is merely history repeating itself. For me, it is reminiscent of the 1980s War on Drugs which led to a disproportionate amount of Black people being incarcerated for the use of crack cocaine, as it was usually more accessible than powder cocaine. In my opinion, the image of people of colour utilising drugs is very much still one of a criminal act, whereas White people are given the benefit of the doubt in many circumstances. Surely, Richardson’s case is a recent and significant example of this.

More generally, I see that women of colour, Black women especially, are implicitly denied the opportunities to succeed in sport. In my view, the banning of swimming caps for natural black hair by the International Swimming Federation ahead of the 2021 Olympics is a premium example of Black women facing invisible, yet persistent barriers in sport. The caps were prohibited on the grounds of them not being suitable for “the natural form of the head”, which suggests to me that Black bodies are continually taken out of what is seen as the ‘norm’ in athletics. White bodies are the standard, and anything which does not fit that prototype is abnormal, unworthy, and alien, so goes the narrative. Then people have the audacity to wonder why fewer people of colour take part in certain sports, such as swimming. 

The bodies of Black women have constantly been scrutinised in sport and athletics, in ways other bodies are not. The most well-known and popular example of the policing of Black female bodies is Serena Williams, a woman who has had just as many comments made about her physique as her tennis-playing skills. The appearance of Black women in sport is routinely a topic of conversation, which makes Richardson, with her unapologetically vibrant hair, long nails, and false lashes, all the more significant in breaking down barriers and stereotypes in the Olympics. She, as well as all other Black female athletes, are vital in ensuring the embedded racism and injustice in athletics is called out and scrutinised. 

Richardson being seen as breaking Olympic regulation while White Olympians are given a larger platform for encouraging the use of CBD is proof that some rules are made to punish some and reward others. After all, not all rules and regulations are neutral, and I believe that when they are rooted in discriminatory beliefs, they require serious reflection and reconsidering.

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