Ruling that the runner had been obstructed by a Brazilian runner at the second exchange (from Allyson Felix to English Gardner) the jury ruled that the US women will rerun the race alone Thursday night. The team of Tianna Bartoletta, Allyson Felix, English Gardner and Tori Bowie led from the outset, with Felix becoming the first female to collect five Olympic athletics golds. Two of the runners in the heat, Felix and Tianna Bartoletta, were part of the team that set the world record (40.82 seconds) at the 2012 Olympics in London. Jamaica finished second in 41.36 and Great Britain finished third with a time of 41.77.
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Jamaica’s second place meant 100-meter and 200-meter victor Elaine Thompson added to her Rio medal collection, although not with the gold she desired.
The United States’ gold run continued early on Day 7 of the track and field competition with Clement’s first individual gold at the Olympics.
The worst part (as if it could get any worse) was that the US team has flubbed handing off the baton event many times before. He won bronze in the 100, and in the 200 semifinals cheekily pushed Bolt into running a faster time than Bolt had planned.
Team USA’s women’s relay team will get another shot at competing in the 4×100 final after a devastating disqualification for dropping the baton during the qualifying heat.
“I think I got propelled at about 20 miles an hour”, said four-times Olympic gold-medallist Felix.
The Americans had taken the hard route to the final, almost missing out on a place after Felix dropped the baton when handing over to Gardner in their heat on Thursday morning.
Jamaica’s Usain Bolt wins the 200-meter dash. They decided not to take it because if they’d run it again slower than the first time, the slower time would count.
Bartoletta added: “I would like to advocate for nine lanes in championship stadiums just in case this happens because we don’t want to ever be responsible for somebody not achieving their own Olympic goals”.
The drawback was the team was given the worst lane of all, Lane 1, which has the tightest corners. Brazil was disqualified, and a US appeal was upheld. “My teammates, they opened it up for me and we ran the race smart and we just wanted to get ready for tomorrow”.
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Thursday’s USA women’s 4×100-meter semifinals were among the most freaky things to happen in the Olympics in a long time. “Tonight I felt like I was the best that I could be and I was going to give these girls one heck of a third leg”.
