Canadians suffer shocking elimination in 4x100m relay

The defending champions in the men’s 4x100m relay, Team Canada, went down to an ignominious defeat in Budapest on Friday, finishing sixth in their heat and failing to advance to the final after it was announced that the team anchor, Andre De Grasse, would not run, since he was competing in the men’s 200m final later in the evening.

The first three teams in each of the two heats advanced to the final, along with the next two fastest non-automatic qualifiers. Canada’s Bolade Ajomale ran the anchor leg in De Grasse’s place. Aaron Brown got off to an excellent start; his 10.43 was the fastest starting leg of the heat. But a combination of awkward handoffs and the stress of the last-minute change of plan conspired to undo the team’s chances. Ajomale’s anchor leg was the slowest of the heat; Friday’s race was reportedly his first relay race with Team Canada this season. He finished seventh in the 100m at the Canadian Track and Field Championships in July.

“We’re shocked, it hasn’t really sunken in yet, but we win as a team and lose as a team.” says 🇨🇦’s Aaron Brown.

The 4x100m quartet were missing Andre De Grasse on the anchor leg. He has the 200m final later this evening.#wabudapest23 #TeamCanada pic.twitter.com/plwzOwuMWd

— Canadian Running (@CanadianRunning) August 25, 2023

Brown and Jerome Blake, who ran the second leg, showed up to the mixed zone, with Brendon Rodney and Ajomale leaving the track. (Rodney did meet with the media interviews.) Brown told Canadian Running, “We’re shocked. It really hasn’t sunk in yet. But we win as a team, and we lose as a team.” 

“Being the defending champions, it’s extremely disappointing we aren’t in that final,” Ajomale said. 

Andre De Grasse 🇨🇦 on not having a chance to run in heats of the men’s 4x100m relay since the 200m final was on the same night.

“All the years I was able to run. They gotta fix that for the next world championships to give everybody a chance to have their best contend.” pic.twitter.com/YN7IxlPsMx

— Canadian Running (@CanadianRunning) August 25, 2023

To add to the disappointment, De Grasse finished sixth in the 200m final, which was won by Noah Lyles, who also won the 100m earlier in the week. Lyles, too, skipped the relay heats, but is expected to appear in the final with Team USA, who had the fastest time in qualification with a world-leading 37.67.

After the 200m final, De Grasse expressed some criticism of the scheduling of races: “All the years I was able to run the relay… They’ve got to fix that for next year [Paris Olympics] and for the next world championship, to give everybody a chance to have their best sprinter contend.” 

The 2023 World Athletics Championships are taking place from August 19-27 at the National Stadium in Budapest, Hungary. All the action will be brought to you by Canadian Running and Asics Canada. Follow us on Twitter on Instagram for all things Team Canada and up-to-date exclusive news and content.