August 02, (THEWILL) – The Nigerian team of Samuel Ogazi, Ella Onojuvwevwo, Emmanuel Ifeanyi Ojeli and Patience Okon-George set a new national record in the Mixed 4x400m relay, clocking 3:11.99s.
Despite their impressive performance, they finished fourth in their heat, narrowly missing out on a place in the final. Great Britain won the heat with a time of 3:10.61, also setting a national record.
The Netherlands and Italy finished second and third respectively, with times of 3:10.81 and 3:11.59. The United States, which dominated the first heat, broke the world record with a time of 3:07.41.
Vernon Norwood, a member of the US team, stated that their goal was to execute good hand-offs and set the tone for the rest of their country’s performance. His teammate, Shamier Little, expressed excitement about their record-breaking run, noting that it was achieved in the preliminary round.
Several other countries also set national records in the event. France (3:10.60), Belgium (3:10.74) and Jamaica (3:11.06) achieved new bests in the first heat. The mixed relay made its Olympic debut at the Tokyo Games, where Poland won gold, followed by the Dominican Republic and the United States.
The final of the Mixed 4x400m relay is scheduled for Saturday. Jamaica and Poland qualified for the final as the two fastest finishers outside the top three automatic spots from each heat. The competition promises to be fierce, with many teams showing significant improvements in their performance.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
