Richard Phillips, a graduate of George Mason University and has represented Jamaica in athletics since 2000.

His breakthrough came at the World Junior Championships in Athletics, which served as a springboard for his career.

At that event, he narrowly missed out on a medal, finishing fourth in front of a packed crowd at the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica.

In 2008, at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, he reached the finals of the 110-meter hurdles, finishing seventh with a time of 13.60 seconds—just 0.42 seconds shy of the bronze medal.

Notably, he competed alongside fellow George Mason alumnus Maurice Wignall (class of 2000).