{"id":121546,"date":"2024-08-10T16:18:18","date_gmt":"2024-08-10T20:18:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/runningmagazine.ca\/?p=121546"},"modified":"2024-08-10T16:51:38","modified_gmt":"2024-08-10T20:51:38","slug":"team-usa-win-4x400m-races-in-near-world-record-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/runningmagazine.ca\/sections\/runs-races\/team-usa-win-4x400m-races-in-near-world-record-times\/","title":{"rendered":"Team USA wins 4x400m races in near-world-record times"},"content":{"rendered":"

In two blistering 4x400m relay races on Saturday in Paris, both the men’s and women’s U.S. teams successfully defended their Olympic titles, storming to gold medals with performances that were mere fractions of a second off the men’s and women’s world records, and the silver and bronze medallists all set national or area records themselves.<\/p>\n

The American men crossed the line in 2:54.44\u2013only 14 hundredths of a second off their own team’s world record, set in 1993 (they also hold the Olympic record, set at 2:55.39 at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing). The American women, too, missed setting a world record by a mere tenth of a second, finishing in 3:15.27, more than four seconds ahead of the Netherlands in silver (3:19.50, a European record) and Great Britain with bronze (3:19.72, a British record).<\/p>\n

\"Team
Team USA celebrates after winning gold in the 4x400m relay final at Paris 2024. Photo: Nick Iwanyshyn<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Benjamin vs. Tebogo <\/h2>\n

The men’s race came down to a fourth-leg battle between two newly-minted Olympic champions in the anchor positions\u2013the USA’s Rai Benjamin<\/strong><\/a> and Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo<\/strong><\/a>\u2013but Tebogo couldn’t close the three metres Benjamin had on him, and had to settle for silver (2:54.53\u2013an African record).<\/p>\n

Quincy Wilson<\/strong>, at 16 the youngest participant in Paris (who ran in the heats), earned a gold medal in his first Olympics.<\/p>\n

Gold: <\/strong>USA 2:54.44 (North American record)<\/p>\n

Silver: <\/strong>Botswana 2:54.53 (African record<\/p>\n

Bronze: <\/strong>Great Britain 2:55.83 (European record)<\/p>\n

Canada did not have a team entered in the men’s 4x400m relay.<\/p>\n

\n

That men’s 4x400m was something else \ud83d\ude24<\/p>\n

\ud83e\udd47 \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 2:54.43 OR
\n\ud83e\udd48 \ud83c\udde7\ud83c\uddfc 2:54.53 AR
\n\ud83e\udd49 \ud83c\uddec\ud83c\udde7 2:55.83 AR#Paris2024<\/a> #Olympics<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/72fSLugOVM<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) August 10, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n