It’s officially been one year since one of the most iconic results of the Paris Olympics: the Canadian 4x100m relay squad sprinting to gold. On August 9, 2024, the quartet of Aaron Brown, Jerome Blake, Brendon Rodney and Andre De Grasse earned Canada’s first track medal of the Games at the Stade de France in a season’s best of 37.50 seconds.
The Canadian squad’s performance was truly iconic–completing a full set of medals for Brown, Rodney and De Grasse, who have been together since winning bronze at Rio in 2016. “Bronze in Rio, silver in Tokyo–this is the icing on the cake–we have our gold,” De Grasse, who received the baton in third position, and passed two competitors to cross the line first, said after the race.
Team South Africa, featuring teen prodigy Bayanda Walaza and anchored by Akani Simbine, took silver in a new national record of 37.57 seconds. Great Britain won bronze in 37.61 seconds. Team USA took a shocking disqualification for passing the baton outside the exchange zone–and that was already after their top sprinter, 100m gold medallist and 200m bronze medallist Noah Lyles, did not compete, due to a Covid diagnosis.
Canadians sprint to Olympic gold in 4x100m relay
The Team Canada win also marked the nation’s second-ever 4x100m gold medal–and the first since the 1996 Games in Atlanta, where Robert Esmie, Glenroy Gilbert, Bruny Surin and Donovan Bailey won the title in a Canadian record of 37.69, which stood until 2016.
“To team up with these guys, to be at the Games like this and to come home with a gold medal…we all talked about this moment,” De Grasse told Canadian Running. “It’s an incredible feeling, and an incredible way for me to end the Games.”
The upcoming 2025 world championships
At April’s 2025 World Athletics Relays in Guangzhou, China, the foursome clocked 38.15 seconds for second in their heat, punching their ticket to the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo. The quartet went on to take bronze in the final in 38.11, finishing behind South Africa (37.61) and the U.S. (37.66).
Heading into September’s global championships, De Grasse and Rodney both withdrew from last weekend’s Canadian nationals due to injury, but Brown and Blake showed top form with strong performances. The relay pool also gained a new contender in Duan Asemota, who claimed the 100m national title.
