The American women’s relay team continued their legacy of Olympic greatness in the 4x100m back in the 2024 Paris Olympics games. After winning their 12th relay gold medal in Paris last year, the USA Women’s team headed to World Athletics Relays to clinch another first-place finish this year. However, at the Tianhe Sports Center in China, the USA women’s relay team, led by Mikiah Brisco, Caisja Chandler, Kayla White, and TeeTee Terry, finished in 4th place with a time of 42.38 seconds. Following this, the USA women’s relay team had to face a disqualification from the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo.

However, as both the 4x100m and 4x400m teams finished just outside the gold medal positions, criticism followed, citing the absence of big athletes. But, the Paris Olympics women’s relay team member Gabby Thomas took a stance to share her perspective on what is actually wrong with the Relays.

In the latest episode of Unfiltered Waters, Gabby Thomas joined the host Katie Hoff and explained how athletes get limited chance to practice with one another before the competition. The 3X Olympic gold medalist said, “No, like people live all around the country and they have different training groups and we come together for this one meet and try to make a relay happen. So, I just want to clear that up. A lot of especially with the men’s relay. I know there are issues, but these people don’t train together.”

She further added, “We only get a couple of opportunities each year to practice together, right? We can train together at Olympic training camp or World Championships training camp, which is right before the meet.” 

Take the Women’s 4x400m relay at the 2024 Paris Olympics for example. Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone lives in Los Angeles, California, and trains under Bob Kersee, while Gabby Thomas lives in Austin, Texas, and trains under Tonja Buford-Bailey. Yet Shamier Little, McLaughlin-Levrone, Thomas, and Alexis Holmes won the gold in Paris by clocking 3:15.27. However, as per Thomas the bigger problem arises when athletes also have to train for different disciplines. “Then you have to practice with the relay order that you think will happen. But obviously, people have their individual events, and things change. People are healthy. People aren’t running fast,” added Thomas.

Let’s take the Tokyo World Championships as an example. September 1st, the team gets declared, and athletes start arriving in Tokyo. So with the individual event training, the relay practice often gets delayed, to prevent the risk of injury. Gabby further explained how high-pressure relay situations can be tricky.

Even a tiny mistake, like leaving a tenth of a second too early, can ruin the exchange and the whole relay. The Olympian also added, “Um, I think the women we’ve done a good job of kind of making it work and just trusting each other and figuring it out. Um, even if we don’t have a lot of practice together, but I think that comes, you know, to the coaching and testament to the culture that we have as a women’s relay program.” She is not wrong.

Other than 4x400m gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Sha’Carri Richardson, Gabby Thomas, Melissa Jefferson, and Twanisha Terry powered the U.S. women’s 4x100m relay to gold in 41.78 seconds. But the USA has long suffered from the problem in relays.

USA and its troubles with the relays

After the Paris Olympics relay, nine-time Olympic champion Carl Lewis called the team out.  He wrote on X, “It is time to blow up the system. This continues to be completely unacceptable. It is clear that EVERYONE at [USA Track and Field] is more concerned with relationships than winning. No athlete should step on the track and run another relay until this program is changed from top to bottom.” He was furious because USA men’s team had flopped in the relays.

In the 4x100m relay at the Paris Olympics, the U.S. men were disqualified in the 4×100m final after a botched baton exchange between Christian Coleman and Kenny Bednarek, costing the team a shot at a medal. Canada won the gold medal with a time of 37.50 seconds. South Africa took silver in 37.57, while Britain got bronze in 37.61. And the USA did not learn.

At the 2025 World Athletics Relays in Guangzhou, the U.S. mixed relay team looked strong on paper, featuring stars like Jada Mowatt and Kendal Williams. But in their very first heat on May 10, a slippery track and a fumbled baton exchange left the baton on the ground, disqualifying the team and leaving them 25 seconds behind. What would be the result in Tokyo?