AP, New York :
NBC set up Friday as duel night between the United States and Jamaica in the sprint relays, and what started out well ended up in heartbreak for the Americans.
The American women were working on a second chance in the 4×100-meter relay. Bumped off course in a heat Thursday, they were given another opportunity to qualify by running against a clock. They succeeded, but heard whispers that they didn’t deserve that chance.
“I think they will come out with a lot of attitude,” NBC analyst Ato Boldon predicted.
He was right, and the U.S. team defended its gold medal with relative ease. Jamaica came in second.
Before the men took the track, NBC aired a creative and prescient prepared report, handing the four American sprinters tablets to see video of flubs that had ruined previous races.
“Unfortunately, we’ve come to be defined by failure,” said the team’s coach, Dennis Mitchell.
As they will again. Viewers knew it wasn’t meant to be when the U.S. began the final lap essentially even with Jamaican superstar Usain Bolt, the world’s fastest man who was attempting to win his ninth gold medal. Nobody would catch him. Japan snuck in for the silver medal and the U.S. thought it earned bronze, but even that slipped from their grasp when they were disqualified for a faulty pass of the baton.
