GUANGZHOU, CHINA – A dominant performance by the final two legs Sunday at the Guangdong Olympic Stadium gave Team USATF a convincing victory in the mixed 4x400 relay as the foursome clocked 3:09.54 to win by almost three seconds with a championship record and the eighth-fastest time in history.
Chris Robinson put the U.S. into the lead by a tenth of a second on the opening leg with the only sub-45 carry, splitting 44.97 and passing to Courtney Okolo, who brought the baton around in 50.88 to hand off in third just behind Australia and Kenya. Breaking the race wide open with a sizzling 44.16 split that was the fastest of the whole race, Johnnie Blockburger gave the American quartet a lead of almost a second as he gave the stick to Lynna Irby-Jackson in clear gold medal position. Irby-Jackson didn't disappoint on the anchor, stretching the lead even more to finish with a 49.53, the fastest women's split of the race.
“It felt amazing,” Lynna Irby-Jackson said following the race. “I don’t think we necessarily had a record on the mind but we knew we wanted to execute and win. Coming out with a championship record is just the cherry on top.”
Kenny Bednarek's storming run down the backstretch keyed a runner-up finish for the men's 4x100, which claimed a Tokyo berth with a season best of 37.66. Courtney Lindsey's solid leadoff carry and smooth pass to Bednarek set up the American squad well, and Bednarek's exchange with Kyree King was also very efficient. King gave the baton to Brandon Hicklin with a very small lead on the anchor, but South Africa's Akani Simbine had the faster finish to give his country the victory in a world-leading 37.61.
“The main part was getting us qualified [for Tokyo] and we did that,” said Kenny Bednarek in a post-race interview. “We’ll go back to the drawing board to see what we can do for Tokyo. Next time we step on the track, we’re going to expect gold.”
Running 3:24.72, the women's 4x400 team of Paris Peoples, Karimah Davis, Maya Singletary, and Bailey Lear took silver as Spain set a national record of 3:24.13 for the victory. Peoples started the Americans off with a 52.21 that put her second at the exchange with Davis, who ran a 50.03 to put the U.S. in the lead. Singletary clocked 52.09 on her leg to keep the team in contention, and Lear finished with a 50.39.
“We work together well and knowing that we’re doing something bigger than just us and helping out Team USA to qualify to get to Tokyo is just awesome,” said Bailey Lear following the competition.
The women's 4x100 also nailed down a Tokyo spot with a fourth-place effort of 42.38. Mikiah Brisco, Cajsa Chandler, Kayla White and TeeTee Terry got the stick around the track safely and were in a blanket finish as the top five teams were within a quarter-second.
In the consolation section of the men's 4x400, Khaleb McRae contributed a blistering anchor leg to lead the U.S. to a win in heat two with a 43.86 split that stopped the clock at a world-leading 2:58.68. The heat win secured a spot at the World Championships in Tokyo in September. Elija Godwin got the festivities under way with a 45.50 leadoff that put the team a stride behind Qatar, and then Justin Robinson seized the lead with a 44.21 effort on the second leg. Kennedy Lightner kept the Americans in the mix with a 45.11 to pass to McRae in second, a half-second adrift of Australia before McRae's anchor heroics.
Handoff woes between Jada Mowatt and Kendal Williams on the second exchange in the inaugural mixed 4x100 put paid to U.S. hopes of a place in the final as the team placed fourth in their heat in 65.77 after picking up the dropped baton and finishing. Kennedy Blackmon handled the leadoff duties before giving the baton to Mowatt, while Pjai Austin was the anchor leg.
A full list of results for the World Athletics Relays Guangzhou 25 can be found here.