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USA sprinter arrested in Florida for allegedly striking Olympian ex-girlfriend days before track meet

By Ryan Morik
Published  May 8, 2025 2:43pm EDT
Florida
FOX News

SOUTH FLORIDA - USA bronze medalist Fred Kerley was arrested on Thursday, days before he was set to compete at a track meet, for allegedly striking his ex-girlfriend.

According to TMZ, citing an arrest report, Dania Beach police arrived at a south Florida hotel before 8:00 a.m. ET after Olympic hurdler Alaysha Johnson claimed Kerley hit her during a conditioning appointment for the meet.

Kerley said he was "going to f–k everyone up in here up," Johnson reportedly said.

Kerley is reportedly alleged to have hit Johnson in the face, causing her nose to bleed. Police reportedly said the injuries "were consistent with her statements."

Kerley was set to run in the 100-meter dash on Saturday and the 200-meter on Sunday at the Grand Slam Track event this weekend. The event later confirmed that Kerley would not compete.

The New York Post reported that Kerley had been booked on a first-degree misdemeanor charge.

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND - SEPTEMBER 05: Fred Kerley of United States during the Weltklasse Zurich as part of Wanda Diamond League on September 5, 2024 in Zurich, Switzerland. (Photo Daniela Porcelli/by Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)

Back in January, Kerley was hit with a domestic violence charge in an unrelated incident from last year, after he was arrested following an altercation with police.

According to an arrest affidavit obtained by Fox News Digital, Kerley and his wife got into a verbal, and then physical, dispute on May 6, 2024 - his birthday - when Kerley's wife was in contact with an "unknown person on Instagram." 

A probable cause alert was then entered into the jail's system, and he was subsequently charged following the January arrest.

Kerley won a bronze medal in Paris in the summer in the 100 meters, while teammate Noah Lyles earned his first Olympic gold. Kerley won the 2022 world championships in the event, and silver in the Tokyo Olympics.

He also has world championships in the 4x400-meter relay in 2019 and the 4x100-meter relay in 2023.

Kerley was a part of the 4x100-meter team in Paris that was disqualified due to a botched handoff. Lyles figured to be a part of that team but fell ill with COVID earlier in the week, which contributed to him falling short in the 200 meters, an event for which he had been the heavy favorite.

Kerley accused the United States Track and Field Association of playing favorites by adding Lyles to the 4x400-meter team in the 2024 world championships.

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