Great Britain has secured four of the five available relay spots at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, following excellent performances on the first day of the World Athletics Relays event in the Bahamas. The men’s and women’s 4x100m and 4x400m teams finished first and second in their heats, respectively, and will battle for lane seeding spots on Day 2. The 4x100m men and women qualified on the first day of racing, as did the 4x400m teams, however the mixed team did not. The top two teams from each heat on day one earned a spot in the Olympic Games, while the second day of racing will determine lane seeding positions.
The women’s 4x100m team of Asha Philip, Imani-Lara Lansiquot, Bianca Williams, and Amy Hunt won the fourth heat in a season-best time of 42.33 seconds, finishing second overall behind the United States. Following the action, Hunt stated that the crew was “super, super happy” with their performance.
That was amazing; it was my first time with these three girls,” Hunt stated. She went on to say that they’ve been absolutely fantastic in trusting me, coaching me, and making sure I’m on track. So, to receive the baton and cross the finish line with the biggest smile on my face, was one of the most enjoyable races I’ve ever done. We arrived here, we performed our job, and we executed, so we’re quite delighted.
The men’s team, which included Zharnel Hughes, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake, Richard Kilty, and Eugene Amo-Dadzie, also set a season best time of 38.36 seconds, finishing second in their heat behind Games hosts France. Victoria Ohuruogu, Hannah Kelly, Nicole Yeargin, and Lina Nielsen competed in the women’s 4x400m and were only beaten by Ireland in the heats, but their time of three minutes and 24.89 seconds earned them a spot on Day 2.
In the men’s 4x400m relay, Matthew Hudson-Smith, Toby Harries, Lee Thompson, and Lewis Davey raced 3:02.10 to finish second, behind Italy. Although the mixed foursome of Brodie Young, Ama Pipi, Charles Dobson, and Laviai Nielsen finished third in their heat behind Ireland and Belgium, they can still secure a quota spot at the Games if they finish in the top two on day two. Meanwhile, Eliud Kipchoge has been named one of Kenya’s six marathon runners for the Paris Olympics, where he hopes to become the first person to win three titles in the event.
