Men's 4x100m relay claim blistering bronze in whirlwind half-an-hour

Athletics 09 Aug 24

Team GB won their third medal in 20 minutes with bronze in the men’s 4x100m relay on the athletics track.

Jeremiah Azu, Louie Hinchliffe, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake and Zharnel Hughes ran a season’s best time of 37.61 to finish 0.11 seconds behind winners Canada.

After the women’s relay team had claimed silver and Jack Carlin sprinted to bronze on the cycling track, the men’s relay team added to the medal tally with a polished performance.

The rain had made the Stade de France track slippery and eternal challengers the USA were disqualified for a failed changeover.

Team GB were steady but took time to build into the race with Azu handing over safely to Hinchliffe before Mitchell-Blake powered GB into contention.

Hughes, who had pulled out of the men’s 200m with a tight hamstring, showed no signs of injury as he ran the joint fastest of anyone on the anchor leg alongside Akani Simbine.

It saw Team GB clinch bronze, beating out reigning champions Italy, with four teams finishing within 0.18 seconds of each other.

"You could see it was a really messy race but we gave all of it," said Hinchliffe.

"It was all heart, all pure speed and we gave 110 per cent. You could see how much we wanted it and we got the result so its great."

"It's like a changing of the guards," added Mitchell-Blake. "I'm fortunate enough to have been part of a couple of quartets and we have some younger guys who have performed phenomenally this year.

"We're one of the best trained teams in the world so we always find a way to step up when it matters most."

Richard Kilty, who was part of the relay team in the heat, will also claim a medal.

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