Masai Russell Explains Why She Could Floor Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, Sha’Carri Richardson and Co in 100m

Olympics 100m hurdles champion Masai Russell believes she would be a “solid” 100m runner if she featured in the event.

Russell has enjoyed a successful 2026 season after staying undefeated the entire year, to complete it with the Diamond League title, the World Athletics Ultimate Championship and a world record to boot.

Russell pocketed $150,000 at the Ultimate Championship in Budapest this month, a week after claiming the Diamond League title in Brussels, while she had set a new world record a fortnight earlier in Zurich, after running 12.09 seconds.

Now the undisputed queen of the 100m hurdles, the American states that she would equally be a menace had she been running the 100m flat given how she trains.

“If I actually trained as a 100m runner, I truly believe I could run something pretty solid,” Russell posted on social media.

“What a lot of people fail to realise is that I train for the 100m hurdles every day. Just like hurdling is a skill, sprinting is a skill too. The best sprinters make it look easy, just like I do hurdling, but I’m here to tell you it’s not.”

Running something solid in 100m is, however, not easy given the times posted by some of the world’s best sprinters.

Jamaican Elaine Thompson Herah remains the fastest woman alive due to her 10.54 seconds recorded in Eugene in 2021 behind world record holder the late Florence Joyner, whose world record of 10.49 was set in July 1988.

Another Jamaican legend Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is third on the all-time list with 10.60 ahead of American Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, who clocked 10.61 in Tokyo last year.

Other top women currently competing are Jamaican Shericka Jackson and American Sha’carri Richardson, tied seventh on the all-time list with 10.65, ahead of Julien Alfred of St Lucia, whose personal best is 10.70.