Surprises and Disappointments Prevailed At The World Athletics Relays ’25

With the track and field season in full swing our attention was  turned to Guangzhou, China. They played host to an annual track event that held implications for another big event coming in September. Over the weekend there were surprises and disappointments that prevailed at the World Athletics Relays ’25 on May 10 and 11. Teams that were expected to do well faltered and other teams far exceeded expectations.

The World Relays consisted of the following six events:

• Women’s 4x100m relay and 4x400m relay
• Men’s 4x100m relay and 4x400m relay
• Mixed 4x100m relay and 4x400m relay

How the various countries performed at this event would determine if they would move on to the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25. Jamaica is known as the “sprinting capital of the world” but their performances on Day 1 were far below expectations. They failed to qualify for the finals of the mixed 4x400m relay and the Jamaican men’s 4x400m team missed the final and the men’s 4x100m team failed to finish their heat. But for the mixed 4x100m the team finished second in the final. Shelley-Ann Fraser-Price looked good but some of her teammates will need to improve.

As for the United States they also suffered disappointment on the first day. The baton was dropped in the mixed 4x100m relay disqualifying them from the finals. Canada eventually took the gold medal in that event, followed by Jamaica for the silver. The United States finished second in two finals, the 4x100m men’s relay and the women’s 4x400m. But in the men’s 4x400m they failed to qualify for the final. However, the Americans in the 4x400m mixed relay, won their heat by more than a second to secure their place at the World Championships. They have work to do but overall finished the event pretty well.

Surprises and Disappointments Prevailed At The World Athletics Relays ’25

But it was Spain who turned heads in all the events. They looked to be complete teams cruising to victories without even breaking a sweat. One person in particular to keep an eye on is Blanca Hervas. She has an excellent finishing kick which allows her to sit back and make her move near the finish line. Italy, Ireland and Belgium put in gritty performances competing in every race to the bitter end.

One thing we noted is that the lineup of the mixed teams was determined by the sports federation. As sports commentator Ato Bolton said, he would prefer that the team set the order. We’ll see if that changes as the young event progresses. So the next stop will take us to Tokyo in September for the World Athletics Championships.

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