The 4x400-meter relay has been a staple race for generations of American sprinters. The United States kept its successful run going Saturday at the 2024 Paris Olympics winning their third straight gold medal by finishing in an Olympic-record 2:54.43 seconds at Stade de France.
It's the sixth straight Olympics with a medal for the Americans, who won gold in 2004, 2008, 2016 and 2020 with a silver in 2012. The last time the U.S. did not reach the podium in the event was at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
The Americans qualified third into Saturday's final after an uneven preliminary heat on Friday was led off by a shaky performance by 16-year-old Quincy Wilson, the youngest track and field Olympian in U.S. history. Wilson ran his opening heat leg in 47.47 seconds before handing off to teammates Vernon Norwood, Bryce Deadmon and Christopher Bailey, each of whom bettered his time by more than three seconds.
There were planned changes made for Saturday's final, which saw Bailey lead off and hand off to Norwood, who started in the middle of the pack but closed to neck-and-neck status before passing to Deadmon for the third leg. Deadmon stretched the lead early before fading late in his leg and having barely a stride's worth of an edge ahead of new anchor man Rai Benjamin, who joined the team after winning a long-sought-after gold in the 400-meter hurdles on Friday.
Benjamin led comfortably for the majority of his lap but had to hold off a late charge from Botswana's Letsile Tobogo, who won the 200 meters earlier this week and closed within a stride before Benjamin leaned to the line. With the win, Benjamin became the first American to win the 400 hurdles and anchor a golden team in the 4x400m.
Botswana was second winning silver in 2:54.53, while Great Britain won bronze in 2:55.83.
Deadmon and Norwood won back-to-back golds in the event having previously been part of the team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and Wilson will receive a medal given his participation in the opening heat.