Not Far Behind Sha’Carri Richardson, 20-Year-Old Star Emerges as Real Threat at NCAA Track and Field Championships

“I’ve been coached by my Dad for like 18 years, so now going out of my comfort zone just takes a little adjusting.” This Razorback sophomore already sounds like a pro. Doesn’t she? After all, track and field is like a family business for her. Her father was a 2008 Olympics bronze medalist and has 4 World medals to his name. But what she is doing now, in 2025, is a whole different league. No wonder, she’s already just a few hundredths of a second behind Sha’Carri Richardson and her famous NCAA mark!

The athlete is none other than Shawnti Jackson. 2 weeks back, she ran an 11.45-second time at the SEC Outdoor track and field championships and finished in 13th place. Yes, her form looked rusty, one could say. Roughly a month before that, she was scheduled to run two races at the Tom Jones Invitational. But she did not start. However, what she just did at the NCAA Champs recently is a complete turnaround! From rusty to dominant, from just another athlete to a real threat on the field, Jackson just flipped the narrative.

As per the May 29 X post by the Razorbacks, at the 2025 NCAA D1 Track and Field West Regionals, Shawnti Jackson just ran an incredible 100m time. She ran a wind-aided (+2.2m/s) 11.05s time to come second in her heat. However, this was enough to qualify her for the quarterfinals scheduled for this Saturday. And it was enough for the NCAA youngster to get some real praise for a field pro.

Yes, looking at Shawnti Jackson’s form, American athlete and a Paris Olympics 2024 gold medalist, Tara Davis-Woodhall tweeted on the Razorbacks’ post. She wrote, “So good to see shawnti back in action.”

2025 NCAA West | 100m

4) 11.05w Shawnti Jackson (2nd in heat)
Wind +2.2

Advances to Saturday quarterfinal pic.twitter.com/sPBzXzM8vN

— RazorbackTF/XC (@RazorbackTF) May 30, 2025

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