By Mitch Phillips
PARIS (Reuters) -The United States took the first, convincing step towards ending their men’s 24-year Olympic sprint relay drought when they qualified fastest from Thursday’s heats, with more firepower to come, but Jamaica crashed out after poor changeovers.
The U.S. women’s team also look well placed to reclaim the title from Jamaica after qualifying fastest, despite a changeover scare.
For a nation that routinely fields multi-finalists in the men’s individual sprints and who dominated the sprint relay for decades, the U.S.’s travails in the last 30 years are nothing short of mind-numbing.
They have not won Olympic gold since 2000 and their only medal is a silver in Athens 20 years ago when their stellar team came up 100th of a second short of Britain.
They did cross the line second in 2012 but were stripped of the title due to a doping offence by Tyson Gay.
Since 1995, in the Olympics and World Championships, they are in double figures for dropped batons, disqualifications or bans.
They did get the baton round in the last two worlds, taking silver in 2022 and gold last year, and have 15 Olympic golds in the event – 13 more than anyone else – but those medals are all looking a little dusty.
Noah Lyles and Kenny Bednarek, who went in the men’s 200 semi-finals on Wednesday and race the final later on Thursday, were understandably absent from Thursday’s heats.
However, former world champion Christian Coleman, making his first appearance of the Games, set them on their way well.
Fred Kerley, who was involved in the botched changeover that ended their Tokyo hopes, ran a strong second leg, handing to green-haired Kyree King, and Courtney Lindsey brought them home well clear in 37.47 seconds.
Akani Simbini ran a storming last leg to take South Africa to second in 37.94, just ahead of Britain (38.04), the silver medallists in Tokyo who were subsequently stripped of their medals following a doping offence by CJ Ujah.
A slick China won the second heat in 38.24 and France were roared to second in 38.34 but Jamaica, champions in 2012 and 2016, messed up two changeovers to finish fourth and miss out on Friday’s final.
IN-FORM QUARTET
The U.S. women took gold ahead of their big rivals in 2012 and 2016 but were knocked back into second in Tokyo.
Jamaica, however, are shorn of the superstars who brought them home three years ago, while the U.S. were able to field an immensely powerful and in-form quartet.
Melissa Jefferson (third in the 100), Twanisha Terry (fifth in the 100), Gabby Thomas (200 gold medallist) and Sha’carri Richardson (silver in the 100) made up Thursday’s team, the last three having won gold at the worlds last year.
They sailed close to the wind with the second changeover as Terry struggled to catch Thomas, losing considerable ground to Germany, which Richardson duly made up with a terrific last leg as they qualified fastest in 41.94 seconds.
Britain, bronze medallists in the last two Games, made it through as winners of the second heat in 42.03 and will be considerably strengthened by the return of Dina Asher-Smith and Daryll Neita for the final.
There was plenty of noise too for second-placed France (42.13), with Jamaica struggling home a distant third in 42.35.
Canada finished fourth in a national record of 42.50 to go through to Friday’s final as a fast loser.
(Reporting by Mitch Phillips, editing by Ken Ferris and Clare Fallon)
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