The United States has been the dominant force in the men’s 4x400-meter relay for the entirety of the event’s Olympic existence. But an upstart Bahamas quartet turned the tables on the U.S. on Friday, winning the first track gold in the nation’s history and stopping nearly three decades of American dominance.
Men’s 4x400m Relay Final: Bahamas Wins, U.S. Misses Gold For First Time Since 1980
Tony McQuay gave Angelo Taylor the baton and the lead entering the anchor leg of the relay, but Taylor, who won gold in the event in Beijing, was chased down by Ramon Miller on the last lap and passed in the final 75 meters. The Bahamas finished in 2:56.72 and the U.S. in 2:57.05.
The last time the U.S. failed to win the 4x400 was in 1980, when the United States boycotted the Moscow Olympics. Team USA had won the last eight gold medals in the iterations of the event it entered, though it was later forced to vacate a medal earned with an ineligible runner in 2000.
Trinidad and Tobago held off Great Britain for bronze, beating out the Brits by .13 seconds.
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