If Sanya Richards were to join the circus, I’d imagine the ringmaster’s intro to go something like this:

“Come one, come call to the greatest show on earth! Raised by a pack of wild cheetahs and nourished on a diet of liquid lightening, she has electricity charging through her veins. Please put your hands together for the fastest woman in the world, Sanya Richards!”

Thankfully you won’t find Sanya wandering with a troop of gypsies, a fire eating monkey or a human cannonball anytime soon. But since we met up at Muscle Beach, in Venice, CA, a modern day, strongmen only sideshow act, it seemed only fitting to give Sanya her own shtick.

The truth is, she doesn’t need the smoke and mirrors. Anyway you cut it, the girl is fast. How fast? At 21 she became the youngest woman to break the 49-second barrier in 400m. Break that down into a 40-yard dash and she’s running a 4.45, faster than any of the Running Backs at the 2009 pro football combine.

Speaking of pro football players, her soon to be hubby, a corner back for a certain New York City, team ran his 40 in 4.44 at the 2007 combine. Now that’s a race I’d like to see.

At 24, the Jamaican born, 2x gold medalist isn’t likely to slow down in the next three years. For starters, speed is in her blood (her mom never lost a race in high school). And with the 2012 London games approaching, Richards is ready to reclaim her 400m gold. A feat she has not accomplished since 2004.

“The mighty may fall, but never yield,” a mantra Richards lives by and one that came in handy after her disappointing 400m bronze finish in Beijing.

Like the performers in the 3-ring circus, Sanya knows, regardless of the obstacles the show must go on. This is one act the curtain won’t close on anytime soon.

-Meghan