The women’s 4x400m and 4x100m relays, as well as the men’s 4x100m race, ended in massive success for the American team. They demonstrated that America’s stance in the relay remained dominant. However, with Rai Benjamin anchoring the men’s 4x400m, things were a bit troublesome. The team ended the race in the second position with the season best 2:57:83. But things got messy when Benjamin made some serious claims regarding the race. He claimed that he didn’t know about the race until that very morning. And that late information cost them a gold medal. However, USATF authorities had a revelation to make. 

On October 16, Jonathan Gault of Letsrun.com had a brief Q&A session with the USATF Chief Content and Communications Officer, Jay Holder. And it was the perfect opportunity for Gault to enquire about Benjamin’s comments regarding the 4x400m relay. He asked about the communication between the USATF and the relay legs following the preliminary race. Holder confirmed, “Our relay teams and orders – for the prelims and for the finals – were decided internally and all athletes involved were communicated with directly well in advance of the prelim round.” The managers were in direct contact with the athletes during the appeal process, according to Holder. He further added, “We are confident that everyone who needed to be in the loop on the status of our appeal and the ultimate decision was informed.”

This made Gault wonder about one thing. If Benjamin knew that he had a race on Sunday morning. But Holder was in no mood for the blame game. He simply pointed out that Benjamin hauled a gold medal at the 400m hurdles the previous night. He was only 0.07 seconds slower in the relay. Hence, Holder felt like Rai Benjamin gave the team his best, like he always does. 

But the journalist wasn’t satisfied. Why would Benjamin claim that he wasn’t aware of his requirement in the 4x400m? The USATF Chief Content and Communications Officer was adamant. He was confident that the athletes and their teams were informed during the appeal process. Holder stated, “When Rai received the baton on Sunday, he was ready and he delivered.” 

However, the American stars’ run in the men’s 4x400m relay wasn’t really a smooth one. There’s a reason why Benjamin believed that his role at the Tokyo World Championships was over and he went out to explore the town at night. 

Tragedy hit Rai Benjamin and his team in the 4x400m heat at the Tokyo World Championships

In the 4x400m heats, Christopher Bailey led Team USA as the gunshot marked the start of the race. Despite his acceleration in the final stretch, he handed the baton over to Demarius Smith at the fifth position in the leaderboard. Smith maintained his stance, but when it came to passing the baton to Bryce Deadmon, there was a disruption. Zambia’s baton pass between Kennedy Luchembe and Sitali Kakene impeded the American team.

The Americans were already in a sticky situation. And the Zambian’s changeover put them in a deeper mess. The USA dropped from the fourth spot to the very last by the time Jenoah McKiver got hold of the baton. They finished sixth, clocking in at 3:01:06. The USATF immediately filed an appeal for obstruction. It was initially rejected, even though the officials disqualified Zambia for being outside the changeover mark. But later, World Athletics had the USA and Kenya, the two impeded teams, compete for a spot in the finals. 

This was a lifeline for the American team, and they got a spot in the finale. But the USATF wasn’t going to make the same mistake again. They changed the team and put Vernon Norwood, Jacory Patterson, Khaleb McRae, and Rai Benjamin on the track. And the team finished second, winning the silver medal. Hence, as per USATF, Benjamin did his best, despite his claims regarding the communications about the race.