She\u2019s America\u2019s weed-heart.
\nSupporters are sprinting to the cause of Sha\u2019Carri Richardson, the track star barred from Olympic competition over marijuana use, with a \u2026<\/b>
\nShe\u2019s America\u2019s weed-heart. Supporters are sprinting to the cause of Sha\u2019Carri Richardson, the track star barred from Olympic competition over marijuana use, with a petition that racked up more than 265,000 signatures in just over 24 hours. \u201cIf it ain\u2019t crack, let her on the track,\u201d wrote Aliya C., who signed on to the \u201cLet Sha\u2019Carri Run!\u201d petition sponsored by MoveOn Civic Action, a progressive lobbying group. Richardson won the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.86 seconds June 19 at the US Olympic trials in Eugene, Oregon, confirming her status as America\u2019s fastest woman. But she was handed a one-month ban Thursday after testing positive for THC, the active component of marijuana Weed is legal for adult use in Oregon, but it remains banned by the International Olympic Committee\u2019s World Anti-Doping Agency unless an athlete has been granted a medical exemption. Richardson, whose colorful hair and strikingly long manicured fingernails made her a fan favorite, said she used cannabis in a \u201cstate of emotional panic\u201d after learning of the death of her biological mother from a reporter one week before the trials took place. \u201cI know what I did,\u201d Richardson told NBC News Friday. \u201cI know what I\u2019m supposed to do\u2026 I still made that decision.\u201d The MoveOn petition, launched on Friday and promoted to the group\u2019s followers with email blasts, demands Richardson\u2019s reinstatement to the US Olympic team, calling the pot ban \u201coutdated and arbitrarily enforced.\u201d \u201cIn no world is marijuana a performance-enhancing drug for runners, and in more places in the United States and around the world, marijuana use is legal,\u201d the petition reads. While Richardson\u2019s 30-day suspension disqualifies her from the 100-meter dash at the Tokyo Olympic Games later this month, she may be allowed to run in the women\u2019s relays starting Aug.5.<\/p>\n