Updated: Nov 15, 2023
In a relay race, teamwork is key. Everyone has to run their best, alongside making sure the baton is passed to the next person smoothly.
Relay races involve the first racer running a part of the course, then handing a baton to the next person who does their part of the course and passes the baton to the third person, and so on until the anchor, the last person, completes the race.
In the 4×100 meter relay race, teams are composed of four members, and each athlete runs 100 meters before passing the baton to the next person in a passing zone. The passing and accelerating zone is 30 meters in length.
Last Saturday, the U.S. men’s team ran in the 4×100 relay at the world championships in Oregon. The race started off smooth, with their first and second baton passes occurring without a hitch. However, things took a bad turn on the last pass.
Elijah Hall struggled to pass the baton to anchor Marvin Bracy, costing the team valuable time. As a result, Canada’s team took advantage of the lost time and was able to take gold with a finishing time of 37.48 seconds. The U.S. team finished second with 37.55 seconds.
Historically, both the U.S. men’s and women’s teams have done well in the 4×100 relay. However, after the year 2000, things have changed. While the women’s team is still doing well, winning gold in the 4×100 relay race last Saturday, the men’s team is falling apart.
Since 2000, the men’s team has never won Olympic gold. In the five world championships between 2007 and 2019, the U.S. men’s team was disqualified twice, didn’t finish once, and won silver twice. At the last Olympics, the men’s team was humiliated when they didn’t even make it out of the preliminary heats.
The New York Times reports of last summer’s Olympics, “Trayvon Bromell, who went into the Olympics with the fastest 100-meter time in the world, got the relay off to a slow start.
Then a handoff miscue between Olympic silver medalist Fred Kerley and Ronnie Baker cost the relay seconds from the second to the third leg. Anchor leg Cravon Gillespie sped to third place, which would have automatically qualified the team for the finals, but he couldn’t keep pace. The men finished sixth in the preliminary heat.”
These repeated failures from the U.S. men’s team are drawing criticism from fans and athletes alike. Nine-time Olympic medalist Carl Lewis tweeted, after the disastrous Olympic relay, “The USA team did everything wrong in the men’s relay.” Looks like the US Men’s team needs to practice doing everything right.
Original Article: https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1658689501263x566932084594871100/American%20Men%20Win%20the%20Silver%20in%20the%204×100-Meter%20Relay.%20-%20The%20New%20York%20Times.pdf
Supporting Articles:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4_%C3%97_100_metres_relay
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relay_race
In a relay race, teamwork is key. Everyone has to run their best, alongside making sure the baton is passed to the next person smoothly.
Relay races involve the first racer running a part of the course, then handing a baton to the next person who does their part of the course and passes the baton to the third person, and so on until the anchor, the last person, completes the race.
In the 4×100 meter relay race, teams are composed of four members, and each athlete runs 100 meters before passing the baton to the next person in a passing zone. The passing and accelerating zone is 30 meters in length.
Last Saturday, the U.S. men’s team ran in the 4×100 relay at the world championships in Oregon. The race started off smooth, with their first and second baton passes occurring without a hitch. However, things took a bad turn on the last pass.
Elijah Hall struggled to pass the baton to anchor Marvin Bracy, costing the team valuable time. As a result, Canada’s team took advantage of the lost time and was able to take gold with a finishing time of 37.48 seconds. The U.S. team finished second with 37.55 seconds.
Historically, both the U.S. men’s and women’s teams have done well in the 4×100 relay. However, after the year 2000, things have changed. While the women’s team is still doing well, winning gold in the 4×100 relay race last Saturday, the men’s team is falling apart.
Since 2000, the men’s team has never won Olympic gold. In the five world championships between 2007 and 2019, the U.S. men’s team was disqualified twice, didn’t finish once, and won silver twice. At the last Olympics, the men’s team was humiliated when they didn’t even make it out of the preliminary heats.
The New York Times reports of last summer’s Olympics, “Trayvon Bromell, who went into the Olympics with the fastest 100-meter time in the world, got the relay off to a slow start.
Then a handoff miscue between Olympic silver medalist Fred Kerley and Ronnie Baker cost the relay seconds from the second to the third leg. Anchor leg Cravon Gillespie sped to third place, which would have automatically qualified the team for the finals, but he couldn’t keep pace. The men finished sixth in the preliminary heat.”
These repeated failures from the U.S. men’s team are drawing criticism from fans and athletes alike. Nine-time Olympic medalist Carl Lewis tweeted, after the disastrous Olympic relay, “The USA team did everything wrong in the men’s relay.” Looks like the US Men’s team needs to practice doing everything right.
Original Article: https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1658689501263x566932084594871100/American%20Men%20Win%20the%20Silver%20in%20the%204×100-Meter%20Relay.%20-%20The%20New%20York%20Times.pdf
Supporting Articles:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4_%C3%97_100_metres_relay
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relay_race
