Multiple relay medals complete Olympics for Razorbacks

SAINT-DENIS, France — On the final evening of athletics at Stade de France, four gold medals and a bronze medal were collected by Razorbacks and members of the Fayetteville pro group in 1,600-meter relay action.

As the United States swept the relays to complete the evening, alum Chris Bailey ran the opening leg of the men’s winning squad. Then the pro tandem of Shamier Little and Alexis Holmes handled the first and fourth legs for the women’s victory.

Razorback Amber Anning anchored Great Britain’s 1,600-meter relay team to a bronze medal. Razorback Kaylyn Brown, who ran in the prelims of the 1,600-meter relay, also received a gold medal with Team USA.

Overall, the current Razorbacks and alums totaled seven medals with three gold, two silver and two bronze. The pro group also totaled seven medals with four gold, two silver and a bronze. Combined, the crew generated 14 medals with seven gold, four silver and three bronze medals.

The men’s 1,600-meter relay clocked an Olympic record time of 2:54.43 in holding off the challenge by Botswana (2:54.53). Bailey’s split of 44.45 seconds on the opening leg and was followed by Vernon Norwood (43.26), Bryce Deadmon (43.54), and Rai Benjamin (43.18), who won the 400-meter hurdles the previous night.

The previous Olympic record of 2:55.39 was set by the U.S. in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The top six places in the Paris Olympic final were best marks for place in any competition.

Capping the athletics portion of the Olympic Games in Stade de France, which will host the Closing Ceremony on Sunday evening, the women’s 1,600-meter relay delivered an American record as Team USA came within a tenth of as second of the world record set in the 1988 Seoul Olympics by Russia.

In winning by four-plus seconds the U.S. produced a time of 3:15.27, the second fastest time ever on the world all-time list, as the Netherlands (3:19.5), Great Britain (3:19.72) and Ireland (3:19.9) battled for silver and bronze as each broke national records.

Little, who ran four relay legs during the Olympics, led off the relay with a 49.48-second split, the fourth fastest first leg in world history. Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone followed with a 47.71 split that put the race out of reach for any other country.

Gabby Thomas, the 200-meter Olympic champion, split a 49.3 seconds on the third leg. Holmes cruised to a 48.78 anchor split to complete the mission as Team USA captured its eighth consecutive Olympic title.

Alum Nikki Hiltz posted a time of 3:56.38 for seventh place in the 1,500-meter run final, finishing as the top American with Elle St. Pierre eighth in 3:57.52.

Romaine Beckford placed 10th in the high jump with a clearance of 7-3.25 for Jamaica, while fellow countryman Ackera Nugent did not finish the 100-meter hurdles final.

The morning session featured the men’s marathon through the streets of Paris. Incoming transfer Yaseen Abdalla, representing Sudan, made his marathon debut on the challenging course and delivered a national record in placing 33rd with an impressive time of 2:11:41.

Adballa bettered the previous national record of 2:18.59, which was also set in Paris by Sumaa Aboubakar in 2021.