On August 3 at Stade de France, under a soft Paris rain, the women’s 100 m final became a moment of raw emotion and shared humanity. Julien Alfred leaped from the blocks, driving ahead to a stirring 10.72 s—Saint Lucia’s first Olympic gold. Sha’Carri Richardson claimed silver at 10.87s while Melissa Jefferson-Wooden took bronze with a 10.92s, representing the first time American runners have won two medals in the event since Atlanta 1996. Now, the Olympic podium once again faced each other on the track in the Prefontaine Classic. But this time, it wasn’t the gold medalist or the fan favorite who crossed the line first!

Sha’Carri Richardson walked into Eugene to defend her 100m title in the Prefontaine Classic. On May 25, 2024, in Eugene, Richardson claimed her first 100 m race of the Olympic year, scorching the track in 10.83 s to secure gold. But this changed this year. Melissa Jefferson-Wooden not only beat the 2024 Olympic gold medalist, Julien Alfred but also Sha’Carri Richardson to win the Pre Classic 100m at the 2025 Prefontaine Classic.

American sprinter Melissa Jefferson-Wooden stormed to victory with a 10.75 into a -1.5 headwind, edging out Julien Alfred, who clocked 10.77 for second. As for Sha’Carri—widely hailed as one of the sport’s GOATs—she stumbled to an unexpected 11.19, finishing last in 11th place. But who is she? Well, to start with, she is Sha’Carri Richardson‘s sister.

“They’re my sisters. I love them to death,” Jefferson said of Richardson and Twanisha Terry after the trio finished one, two, and three (Richardson first, Jefferson second, and Terry third) in the 100-meter final at the US Olympic Trials. She also shares the coach with them. Melissa Jefferson was born in a small town of Georgetown, South Carolina–population 8,403 according to the U.S. Census of 2020. “I’m a small-town girl, from the country, going to school in the woods,” Jefferson-Wooden said in the 2021 WMBF interview. After her two medal wins at Paris 2024, Georgetown celebrated Melissa Jefferson with a parade in October. The city also proclaimed October 12 as Melissa Jefferson Day in her honor.

Jefferson went to Carvers Bay High, where she dominated sprints, won state titles, and even earned the title of Homecoming Queen. But the track and field athlete did something heroic – she saved a life at 17. She underwent stem-cell donation to treat her father’s myelodysplastic syndrome (a bone marrow disorder), saying, “It’s my dad, and I want him around for a long time.” She was a freshman at Coastal Carolina University in 2020 and stayed there until 2022 before she went pro. Apart from all the titles she won here, she also met her husband, Rolan Wooden II, a former Coastal Carolina football player.  They got married in March 2025.

Melissa Jefferson and her continuous streak…

While in Coastal Carolina University, she rewrote the record books—becoming the school’s first-ever individual NCAA indoor champion by winning the 60 m in 7.09 s in March 2022—and went on to dominate the Sun Belt, clinching titles in the 100 m, 200 m, not only becoming the 2022 Sun Belt Conference Champion but also the 2022 Sun Belt Conference Women’s Most Outstanding Track Performer. In June 2022, as a junior at Coastal Carolina University, Melissa Jefferson captured the USATF 100 m national title with a spectacular 10.69 s (wind-aided) performance—becoming one of the first collegians to win the senior USATF crown and punching her ticket to the World Championships that summer.

At the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, she finished eighth in the individual 100 m and then anchored Team USA’s 4×100 m relay, helping the U.S. upset the favored Jamaican team to win gold in 41.14 s. Now she is dominating the 2025 season – her grand slam track campaign speaks of it. At the circuit’s inaugural Kingston meet (April 4–6), Jefferson‑Wooden dominated the women’s short‑sprint group — winning both the 100 m and 200 m to become the event’s Slam Champion in her category.

In Miami (May 2–4), she powered to a 10.75 s win in the 100 m (wind‑assisted) to top a competitive field including Gabby Thomas and Tamari Davis. hen in Philadelphia (May 31–June 1) she delivered personal bests in both sprints,21.99 s for the 200 m and a scorching 10.73 s for the 100 m, securing 24 points and nearly $100 K to claim the short‑sprint crown and the series’ overall title.