The men's 4 × 100 metres relay at the 2019 World Athletics Championships was held at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar, from 4 to 5 October 2019.
Summary Background Defending champion Great Britain was back with two members of their winning team, taking the qualifying heats with a world leading time. South Africa set the African continental record as they qualified winning the other heat. In a familiar situation, despite having the gold and silver medalists on their team, USA struggled with their handoff, completing their handoff at the end of the third zone and missing disqualification by inches or a favorable judge's decision. USA was the slowest qualifier into the final, just .08 ahead of Italy setting their national record in the adjacent lane. Because of the poor qualification position, USA drew lane 8. Instead of a substitute anchor runner, they went with their "A" team, putting in 200 meter champion Noah Lyles. Lyles spent the 2019 season coming back after slow starts, essentially demonstrating his superior top end speed. In a relay with a rolling start, his slow starts are negated. USA put the fastest starter, now the fastest man in the world, Christian Coleman in the blocks running against GBR's fastest turn runner Adam Gemili.
Race Coleman did his part, gaining rapidly on China's best starter Su Bingtian to his outside. With a smooth handoff, as Justin Gatlin took his first step, he was ahead of China meaning USA would have no traffic interference for the rest of the race. One lane inside of Coleman, Gemili also did his job, keeping GBR close. Shuhei Tada for Japan also gained on World Relays champion Brazil.
On the second leg, Gatlin separated from Xu Zhouzheng and Zharnel Hughes also lost a little to the Olympic champion, but USA was right where GBR could watch them. Mike Rodgers had to hesitate to get the baton from Gatlin, but with USA's history, there was no disaster. GBR's handoff was also hesitant, with Richard Kilty having to decelerate to not run out of the handoff zone, but Japan passed quickly to former junior world record holder Yoshihide Kiryū to keep them close. Through the turn, Rodgers separated from Kilty, Kiryū also gained with Japan passing in second place and South Africa was pulling close to Brazil to create a traffic jam. USA handed off cleanly to Lyles, as if they had practiced the handoff in advance. Japan handed off to their national record holder Abdul Hakim Sani Brown, GBR handed off to Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake, South Africa gave it to #6 on the season Akani Simbine and Brazil had Paulo André de Oliveira. And they were off to the races.
With a metre and a half advantage, Lyles expanded it to three metres by the finish. Lyles crossed the line holding the baton in the air in victory. Mitchell-Blake gained slightly to battle Brown for the medals, taking silver by a half a metre. Behind them de Oliveira came back on Simbine to nip South Africa at the line.
USA's 37.10 tied Jamaica's rescinded Usain Bolt/Asafa Powell powered 2008 Olympic team for the third fastest ever and the American record. Great Britain's 37.36 tied two more Bolt led Jamaican World Championship teams from 2013 and 2015 for the sixth best ever and the European record. Japan's 37.43 moved them into #14 in history, #4 as a country and the Asian record. And Brazil moved to become the #8 country, just behind South Africa's now #7 place from their faster race the trials and set the South American record improving on the one they tied in the trials. In all four continental records and nine national records among the 16 team event.
Records Before the competition records were as follows:
Record Team Date LocationWorld36.84Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, Yohan Blake, Usain Bolt11 Aug 2012London, United KingdomChampionship37.04Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, Yohan Blake, Usain Bolt4 Sep 2011Daegu, South KoreaWorld leading37.60Chijindu Ujah, Zharnel Hughes, Richard Kilty, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake21 Jul 2019London, United KingdomAfrican37.94Osmond Ezinwa, Olapade Adeniken, Francis Obikwelu, Davidson Ezinwa9 Aug 1997Athens, GreeceAsian37.60Ryota Yamagata, Shota Iizuka, Yoshihide Kiryu, Asuka Cambridge19 Aug 2016Rio de Janeiro, BrazilNACAC36.84Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, Yohan Blake, Usain Bolt11 Aug 2012London, United KingdomSouth American37.90Vicente de Lima, Édson Ribeiro, André da Silva, Claudinei da SilvaSydney, AustraliaEuropean37.47Chijindu Ujah, Adam Gemili, Daniel Talbot, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake12 Aug 2017London, United KingdomOceanian38.17Paul Henderson, Tim Jackson, Steve Brimacombe, Damien Marsh12 Aug 1995Gothenburg, SwedenAnthony Alozie, Isaac Ntiamoah, Andrew McCabe (sprinter), Josh Ross10 Aug 2012London, United Kingdom
The following records were matched or set at the competition: Record Team Date World leading37.56 Adam Gemili, Zharnel Hughes, Richard Kilty, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake4 Oct 2019African37.65Thando Dlodlo, Simon Magakwe, Clarence Munyai, Akani SimbineSouth AfricanChinese37.79 Su Bingtian, Xu Zhouzheng, Wu Zhiqiang, Xie ZhenyeSouth American37.90 Rodrigo do Nascimento, Vitor Hugo dos Santos, Derick Silva, Paulo André de OliveiraBrazilianDutch37.91 Joris van Gool, Taymir Burnet, Hensley Paulina, Churandy MartinaItalian38.11 Federico Cattaneo, Marcell Jacobs, Davide Manenti, Filippo TortuWorld leading37.10 Christian Coleman, Justin Gatlin, Mike Rodgers, Noah Lyles 5 Oct 2019United StatesEuropean37.36 Adam Gemili, Zharnel Hughes, Richard Kilty, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake BritishAsian37.43 Shuhei Tada, Kirara Shiraishi, Yoshihide Kiryū, Abdul Hakim Sani BrownJapaneseSouth American37.72 Rodrigo do Nascimento, Vitor Hugo dos Santos, Derick Silva, Paulo André de OliveiraBrazilian
Schedule The event schedule, in local time (UTC+3), was as follows:
Date Time Round4 October 21:05 Heats5 October 22:15 Final
Results Heats The first three in each heat (Q) and the next two fastest (q) qualified for the final.
Rank Heat Lane Nation Athletes Time Notes 1 1 6 Adam Gemili, Zharnel Hughes, Richard Kilty, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake 37.56 Q, 2 2 4 Thando Dlodlo, Simon Magakwe, Clarence Munyai, Akani Simbine 37.65 Q, 3 2 5 Yuki Koike, Kirara Shiraishi, Yoshihide Kiryū, Abdul Hakim Sani Brown 37.78 Q, 4 2 9 Su Bingtian, Xu Zhouzheng, Wu Zhiqiang, Xie Zhenye 37.79 Q, 5 2 6 Amaury Golitin, Jimmy Vicaut, Méba-Mickaël Zeze, Mouhamadou Fall 37.88 q, 6 1 2 Rodrigo do Nascimento, Vitor Hugo dos Santos, Derick Silva, Paulo André de Oliveira 37.90 Q, = 7 2 3 Joris van Gool, Taymir Burnet, Hensley Paulina, Churandy Martina 37.91 q, 8 2 2 Gavin Smellie, Aaron Brown, Brendon Rodney, Andre De Grasse 37.91 9 1 5 Christian Coleman, Justin Gatlin, Mike Rodgers, Cravon Gillespie 38.03 Q, 10 1 4 Federico Cattaneo, Marcell Jacobs, Davide Manenti, Filippo Tortu 38.11 11 1 7 Oshane Bailey, Yohan Blake, Rasheed Dwyer, Tyquendo Tracey 38.15 12 2 7 Julian Reus, Joshua Hartmann, Roy Schmidt, Marvin Schulte 38.24 13 1 8 Sean Safo-Antwi, Benjamin Azamati-Kwaku, Martin Owusu Antwi, Joseph Amoah 38.24 1 3 Kayhan Özer, Jak Ali Harvey, Emre Zafer Barnes, Ramil Guliyev 2 8 Enoch Olaoluwa Adegoke, Usheoritse Itsekiri, Ogho-Oghene Egwero, Adeseye Ogunlewe 1 9
Final The final was started on 5 October at 22:15.
Rank Lane Nation Athletes Time Notes 8 Christian Coleman, Justin Gatlin, Mike Rodgers, Noah Lyles 37.10 , 7 Adam Gemili, Zharnel Hughes, Richard Kilty, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake 37.36 4 Shuhei Tada, Kirara Shiraishi, Yoshihide Kiryū, Abdul Hakim Sani Brown 37.43 4 6 Rodrigo do Nascimento, Vitor Hugo dos Santos, Derick Silva, Paulo André de Oliveira 37.72 5 5 Thando Dlodlo, Simon Magakwe, Clarence Munyai, Akani Simbine 37.73 6 9 Su Bingtian, Xu Zhouzheng, Wu Zhiqiang, Bie Ge 38.07 2 Amaury Golitin, Jimmy Vicaut, Méba-Mickaël Zeze, Christophe Lemaitre 3 Joris van Gool, Taymir Burnet, Hensley Paulina, Churandy Martina 37.80
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