Team USA's runners in the men’s 4x100-meter relay at the Paris Olympics have come under fire from Michael Johnson and Carl Lewis after the quartet were disqualified.
American four-piece Christian Coleman, Kenny Bednarek, Kyree King and Fred Kerley struggled to seventh place in proceedings during an outing to forget on the track at Stade de France . However, their woes were only compounded as they later faced the ignominy of disqualification.
That came after a baton pass executed from Coleman to Bednarek went wrong, leaving the pair outside of the exchange zone and sealing their fate in the process. This debacle was the latest in a run of forgettable showings from the U.S. in the event, with the nation having failed to qualify for the final in Tokyo three years ago.
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The American team did not fare much better in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 either, with another botched baton pass - this time between Mike Rodgers and Justin Gatlin - leading to disqualification. In addition, the team also were stripped of their silver medal in London in 2012 as a result of a doping case involving Tyson Gay.
Now, Olympics legend Johnson , who won four golds at the Games including one in the 4×400 m relay at Barcelona in 1992, has spoken of his disappointment at what he saw from his compatriots in Paris. Not holding back, he asserted: "It's laughable at this point.
"I'll give you another analogy - the last time we won it at the Olympics I was still competing. But congratulations to Canada, Andre de Grasse goes out of this with an Olympic medal. South Africa - no one expected them to be silver medallists and Great Britain - they're super happy with their bronze medal."
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Meanwhile, iconic nine-time Olympic gold medalist Lewis was similarly left irked by what he had witnessed from the 2024 vintage. Taking to X, he said: "It is time to blow up the system. This continues to be completely unacceptable. It is clear that EVERYONE at [USA Track & Field] is more concerned with relationships than winning. No athlete should step on the track and run another relay until this program is changed from top to bottom."
Speaking about the team's showing in the event, a dejected Kerley admitted: "We are here to perform and do what USA do best. We didn’t get the job done… I don’t think we’re disappointed, we’ve just got to learn from this and keep on going."
Likewise, Coleman added: "We practiced a lot. Me and Kenny have been competitors but also teammates a few times over the years. We felt really confident going out there. In the heat of the moment, it just didn’t happen out there. I’m not sure if you want me to point fingers or something like that. As a team, as a unit, we didn’t get it done today."
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