and well-rested, Richards-Ross began her 2012 quest for the coveted individual Olympic gold medal by racing a full indoor schedule to warm up for her outdoor debut. With four wins in four indoor races under her belt coming into the 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships, she secured a resounding 400-meter victory in Istanbul with a time of 50.79 seconds, 0.97 seconds ahead of the Russian runner-up. Her first indoor world title ushered in some much-needed confidence as the outdoor season began. Richards-Ross decisively won the 400-meter final at the 2012 U.S. Olympic trials, tying the Olympic trials record of 49.28 seconds and earning a berth to her third consecutive Olympics. Longtime teammate Deedee Trotter and the 2011 world bronze medalist Francena McCorory finished second and third, respectively, and joined her on the 400 meters team. Later at the trials, Richards-Ross also finished third in the 200-meter sprint in 22.22 seconds, allowing her to attempt the rare 200 meter-400 meter double at the 2012 London Olympics. Once again, heading into the Olympic Games as the 400-meter favorite, she shouldered the same pressure and expectations, but this time, Richards-Ross was prepared to maintain her serenity amidst the vortex. Stiff competition lined up for the 400 meters final in London, including the defending 2008 Olympic champion Christine Ohuruogu of Great Britain, 2011 world champion Amantle Montsho of Botswana, and Antonina Krivoshapka of Russia, who held the world-leading time of 49.16 seconds. From the sound of the gun, Richards-Ross executed a race opposite of the one four years ago, pushing hard out of the blocks before relaxing into a comfortable stride down the backstretch and entering the homestretch in the third position, behind Krivoshapka and Deedee Trotter. The U.S. champion willed her legs to pull ahead of the field with fifty meters left of the race and in the final moments, which almost mirrored the 2008 race in Beijing as Ohuruogu closed down quickly on the leading American, Richards-Ross held on to win in 49.55 seconds, finally earning the gold medal that had long eluded her. This victory became the first time an American woman had won the event in 28 years, since Valerie Brisco-Hooks in 1984. Despite a fifth-place finish later in the 200 meters final, the newly crowned Olympic champion concluded the Games by running 49.1 seconds on the anchor leg of the victorious U.S. women's 4 × 400 meters relay team