Olympic sprinter Christian Coleman is standing by his girlfriend, fellow Olympian Sha’Carri Richardson, after her arrest on domestic assault charges. Richardson, 25, was detained July 27 after allegedly shoving Coleman to the ground during an argument at the Seattle-Tacoma Airport. However, Coleman, 29, brushed off the incident at a press conference on Sunday, telling reporters he didn’t think Richardson should have been arrested. “I think it was a sucky situation all around,” said Coleman, who declined to press charges. “She has things that she needs to work on for herself, of course … But I’m the type of guy who’s in the business of extending grace, and mercy and love.” The three-time World Champion said the incident did not impact his performance in Sunday’s U.S. Track and Field Championships. However, both he and Richardson had uncharacteristically poor performances. Coleman failed to advance to next month’s World Championships in any category, while Richardson, who has an automatic slot in the 100m race as the defending champion, failed to qualify in the 200m. “I know that it’s been a tough journey for her this year,” Coleman told reporters Sunday. “But she’s going to bounce back. She’s a human being and a great person. To me, she’s the best female athlete in the world.”
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