Rihanna showed support for track and field athlete Sha’Carri Richardson on social media this week while mocking the Olympic Village cardboard beds that athletes will be sleeping on this summer.
On Tuesday, Richardson posted a picture on Instagram of her standing in front of a mirror all dolled up, with a large sized bed behind her, captioned “Beauty before the beast is unleashed."
The "Wild Thoughts" crooner commented on Richardson’s post and said “yasss for the non cardboard bed,” taking a swipe at the Olympics and letting Richardson know that she isn’t missing out since being disqualified from participating in the summer games.
The 21-year-old athlete who is considered to be the fastest American woman, was suspended from the Olympic team earlier this month and lost her chance to compete in the 100m event at the Olympics after she tested positive for marijuana use, as Blavity previously reported.
Richardson said she used marijuana before competing in last month’s Olympic trials after she learned about the passing of her mother.
After her confession and the announcement of her suspension, she was not selected by U.S. track officials to compete in the 4x100m relay event at the Tokyo Olympics.
In an interview with Today, Richardson profoundly reflected on the setback.
“This is just one game. I’m 21. I’m very young," the rising star said. "Unlike most, I have plenty of games left in me to compete in, and I have plenty of talent that backs me up, because everything I do comes from me naturally: No steroids…After my sanctions is up, I’ll be back and ready to compete.”
Rihanna’s support for Richardson comes after a Japanese bedding company called Airweave announced it would provide Olympic athletes with “high resistance lightweight cardboard” beds, USA Today reported.
The use of these beds drew criticism and a false claim that the beds were being provided to prevent athletes from having sex. However, according to Tokyo 2020 organizer, Takashi Kitajima, the beds can support up to 441 pounds and were created to be sustainable and comfortable.
The “Good Girl Gone Bad” singer is one of many people who have come out and supported Richardson after she was disqualified from participating in the Olympics.
Recently, Richardson teamed up with Beats by Dre and Kanye West for a new ad that dropped just days before the Olympic games are slated to begin.
On Tuesday, Beats by Dre dropped a one-minute ad featuring Richardson and a new song by West, showing her sporting new Beats Studio Buds while warming up on a track and then looking to the sky with a hopeful attitude, Today reported.
Richardson has stated that she is hopeful that she will return and have another chance to compete in the Olympics in the future.
