London 20 25: USA women win sprint gold to crash Jamaica’s party

The USA’s women’s 4 x 100m relay team crashed Jamaica’s sprint party at the London 2012 Olympics by annihilating a 27-year world record to win gold in a time of 40.82sec.

Carmelita Jeter stormed home in the final leg of an extraordinary performance that left the stadium stunned and destroyed a record of 41.37 set by East Germany in 1985. As she crossed the finishing line Jeter pointed at the clock displaying the new world record and roared in delight as her team swept away a record set when the communist country dominated women’s track and field while it was known to have been running an institutionalised doping programme

The Americans’ perfect run also destroyed the Olympic record set by East Germany in 1980.

The Jamaican quartet took silver in a time of 41.41, a run that would have been good enough to take the Olympic record and is the third-fastest in history. Ukraine took bronze in a time of 42.04.

The race was the climax to gripping battle for sprint supremacy that has played out all week between the women of America and Jamaica.

The first honours went to the Caribbean island last Saturday when Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce made history by retaining her Olympic 100m title from Beijing in 2008. America hit back in the 200m on Thursday when America’s Allyson Felix prevailed.

“I knew that these girls were going to run their hearts out,” said Jeter. “I knew we were running fast. I was already pointing at the clock, saying ‘there it is’. There was a cloud hanging over us, with people saying, ‘They can’t do this, they’re going to drop the stick’ but we did it.”

Felix said the team would “go down in history”. “It’s a relief,” she said. “When we went into this, we were the most comfortable I have seen this team. We were laughing and smiling and I have never seen the team like that.”

The Americans’ perfect run also destroyed the Olympic record set by East Germany in 1980.

The Jamaican quartet took silver in a time of 41.41, a run that would have been good enough to take the Olympic record and is the third-fastest in history. Ukraine took bronze in a time of 42.04.

The race was the climax to gripping battle for sprint supremacy that has played out all week between the women of America and Jamaica.

The first honours went to the Caribbean island last Saturday when Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce made history by retaining her Olympic 100m title from Beijing in 2008. America hit back in the 200m on Thursday when America’s Allyson Felix prevailed.

“I knew that these girls were going to run their hearts out,” said Jeter. “I knew we were running fast. I was already pointing at the clock, saying ‘there it is’. There was a cloud hanging over us, with people saying, ‘They can’t do this, they’re going to drop the stick’ but we did it.”

Felix said the team would “go down in history”. “It’s a relief,” she said. “When we went into this, we were the most comfortable I have seen this team. We were laughing and smiling and I have never seen the team lLondon 2012: USA women win sprint gold to crash Jamaica’s partyike that.”