The countdown to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games is already creating excitement around one of athletics’ most anticipated battles: the women’s 100 metres. With Olympic champion Julien Alfred, American star Sha’Carri Richardson, Jamaican powerhouse Shericka Jackson and reigning world champion Melissa Jefferson-Wooden all in the picture, the sprint showdown could become one of the defining races of LA28.
The women’s 100m is scheduled to take place on the opening day of the athletics programme in Los Angeles, putting the spotlight firmly on the fastest women in the world.
Alfred enters the conversation with the confidence of an Olympic champion. The Saint Lucian established herself as one of the sport’s biggest stars by winning the 100m at Paris 2024. Her explosive acceleration and ability to perform under pressure make her a natural favourite whenever a major championship final approaches.
However, Alfred will face an increasingly competitive American challenge led by Jefferson-Wooden and Richardson.
Jefferson-Wooden has already demonstrated that she can handle the biggest stage. At the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, she produced a stunning 10.61 seconds to win the women’s 100m world title, defeating a field that included Alfred, Jackson and Richardson. Alfred took bronze, Jackson finished fourth and Richardson was fifth.
That performance established Jefferson-Wooden as one of the most dangerous sprinters heading toward the next Olympic cycle. She also added the 200m world title in Tokyo, completing an extraordinary sprint double. Her 21.68-second winning performance in the 200m underlined her versatility and ability to maintain speed beyond the shortest sprint.
Richardson, meanwhile, remains one of the most recognisable names in global sprinting. The American won Olympic silver in the 100m at Paris 2024 and remains capable of producing spectacular performances when everything comes together. Her rivalry with Jefferson-Wooden has already generated considerable attention, including their meeting at the 2026 Prefontaine Classic, where Jefferson-Wooden won in 10.78 seconds and Richardson followed closely in 10.79.
Then there is Jackson, whose experience and record make her impossible to overlook. The Jamaican has been one of the dominant figures in the 200m for several years and owns a personal best of 10.65 seconds for the 100m and 21.41 for the 200m. Her strength over the longer sprint distance could make her especially dangerous if the LA28 battle extends into the 200m.
The exciting part is that these athletes are already producing major clashes well before Los Angeles. Alfred and Jefferson-Wooden have faced each other in high-profile Diamond League competition, while Richardson and Jefferson-Wooden have also repeatedly shared the track. Jackson continues to provide another major Jamaican threat in both sprint events.
For fans, the prospect of seeing Alfred, Richardson, Jackson and Jefferson-Wooden together in an Olympic final is mouth-watering. Each athlete brings a different strength: Alfred has Olympic-winning composure, Richardson possesses explosive speed and star power, Jackson brings experience and remarkable range, while Jefferson-Wooden currently carries the authority of the world champion.
Two years can change everything in athletics, with injuries, form and emerging challengers capable of reshaping the landscape. Yet if these four stars remain healthy and continue improving, LA28 could deliver a women’s 100m final worthy of Olympic history.
The road to Los Angeles has only just begun, but the pace is already frightening.
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