World Relays Yokohama - Day 2

This is Why We Run the Races: Part Deux

by Mark Cullen/Trackerati.com © 2019 All Rights Reserved

Photos by Roger Sedres for the IAAF

Brazil's Paulo Camilo de Oliveira
anchors the upset
Men's 4x100m Relay

If you made predictions for the 2019 IAAF World Relays, may I help you get that egg off your face?

What? Oh, I have egg on mine?

Surely you picked Brazil to win the men’s 4x100m. No?

France to win the women’s 4x200m. What?

Trinidad and Tobago the men’s 4x400m? 

Not enough eggs to go around?

You picked Poland to dust off the US in the women’s 4x400m. And you had Italy for 3^rd, right?

The refrain of this meet: this is why we run the races.

Women's 4x400m Relay

Poland's Justyna Swiety-Ersetic
anchors the upset

Poland set the tone for an upset-filled day with their unexpected victory in the women's 4x400m relay. The race was won on the final pass as Poland was 3rd coming to the exchange and 1st coming out.

Anna Kielbasinska is the unsung heroine of this win for her textbook pass, with props to Justyna Swiety Ersetic for a terrific anchor; she held off Courtney Okolo of the US and top-notch hurdler Janieve Russell of Jamaica - that's heady stuff. 

Even though Russell took the lead briefly with 200m to go, she had to work too hard to get there, and Ersetic sped to a surprisingly comfortable victory over the US, with a strong team from Italy in 3rd.

Men's 4x400m Relay

 Trinidad and Tobago's Macho Cedenio
anchors the upset

OK, this is not such a huge upset as Trinidad and Tobago won the 2017 World title. The US had a 15 meter lead with 300m to go, but super-closer Macho Cedenio ran down US' Paul Dedewo for the win. Dedewo almost pulled off a spectacular win (note him in mid-air in the photo, above), but he began to tie up with 30m to go. To add insult to injury, the US was disqualified for a lane violation on the last exchange.

The next time Trinidad and Tobago wins the men's 4x400m, it won't be an upset anymore, as the United States teams from London 2017 and today can attest. Had it not been for today's DQ, the US would have been silver medalists in the last two major 4x400s. Belgium finished 3rd with only two of the bevy of Borlee brothers running today.

Women's 4x200m Relay

France's Maroussia Pare
anchors the upset

Jamaica fielded a team with two Olympic champions, Elaine Thompson and Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce. They got a lot of attention, but not of the kind they had hoped for. Video of Jamaica's abysmal passing will outlive them - especially Thompson's opening pass to Stephanie-Ann McPherson - and the US team can thank Jamaica for having even worse passes than theirs. Meanwhile, France, in lane 9, had the privilege of not viewing the disasters occurring inside of them, and they did what their Middle School coaches taught them to do and they did it to perfection. France, China, and Jamaica took the podium places.

Mixed 4x400m Relay

Dontavious Wright Anchors the US
to the World Mixed Relay 4x400m title

The US won this event handily, and part of the pre-race speculation - in what order would the teams run their athletes? - was answered when all teams ran men on the opening and closing legs while women established several of the final places on the 2nd and 3rd legs. The US had a comfortable win over Canada, with Kenya earning bronze.

Men's 4x200m Relay

Remontay McLain Anchors the US to the 4x200m Relay Title

All went according to form as the US, South Africa, and Germany won the medals. The US team passed well and established enough of a cushion that Remontay McLain held off South Africa's 100m star Akani Simbine. Simbine closed well on McLain, who simply had too much of a lead to overcome. Germany set a national record in 3rd, while South Africa's 1:20.42 is an area record.

Women's 4x100m Relay

Aleia Hobbs Anchors the US to the World Relays 4x200m Title

The United States ran the same team two days in a row, and this consistency paid off in a big way. NCAA Champ Aleia Hobbs was given a comfortable enough lead by Dezerea Bryant, but Jamaica's Jonielle Smith took an 'it's not over 'till it's over' attitude into her anchor leg and made up a substantial amount of territory on Hobbs, only to lose by .02, 43.27 to 43.29. Germany was a comfortable 3rd in 43.68.

Men's 4x100m Relay

Brazil's 4x100m Relay Team
after the upset

With Justin Gatlin leading off and Noah Lyles on anchor, this was to be a slam dunk for the US, correct? Not so fast. The US team might have taken a page from the victorious US women book and run the same team two days in a row.

While not terrible, the US passing was merely average, and that's not good enough at this level. Brazil was in lane 7 (interesting how some teams in the outer lanes did so well in this meet) and doing just what France did in the women's 4x200: sticking to crisp passing and taking the lead out of the final exchange. Brazil's Paulo Camilo de Olivera ran a brilliant anchor and held off a a hard-charging Lyles by exactly the same margin as the US women's 4x100m team: .02, 38.05 to 38.07, with Great Britain in 3rd in 38.15.

Pssst. Want a meet summary? 
For the first time in World Relays history, Jamaica did not win a gold medal. 
You heard it here first.

Special thanks to IAAF senior website editor Jon Mulkeen for making available Roger Sedres' magnificent photos of this compelling event. 

And thanks to Sedres, of course, for his terrific images.

Winners' Parade