On Jamaica’s 59th Independence Day, the Jamaican women secured gold in the 4x100m relay at the Tokyo Olympics, pushing the country’s medal count to eight.
The quartet of Briana Williams, Elaine Thompson-Herah, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and
Shericka Jackson clocked a national record 41.02 seconds to win the event. It was the first time since 2004 that the Jamaican women won the 4x100m relays.
The USA were second in 41.45 seconds and Great Britain third in 41.88 seconds.
It was the third gold for Thompson-Herah to add to her sprint double triumph earlier in the Games. It was also the first Olympic medal for 19-year-old track sensation Briana Williams – a south Florida native, born to a Jamaican mother.
In the 4x100m relay event, the Jamaican men missed out on a medal for the first time since 2008.
Italy won the relay to give Marcell Jacobs his second gold medal of the Tokyo Games. Jacobs won the men’s 100-meter title last Sunday and was part of the team that won the sprint relay in a national record 37.50 seconds.
The Italians edged Britain by 0.01 and Canada took bronze in 37.70. China placed fourth ahead of Jamaica, who took fifth place.
