PARIS — The four women on the U.S. 4X100 relay team won gold, draped American flags around themselves, celebrated with fans, and slowly made their way around to the second turn of the purple track, where they huddled against a wall and watched a debacle.
Melissa Jefferson, Twanisha Terry, Gabby Thomas, Sha’Carri Richardson did not run a perfect race. The exchanges, especially from Thomas to Richardson, could been cleaner. But they showed the poise, teamwork and breathtaking speed that got them here—especially Richardson, who was a hair behind Great Britain and Germany when she got the baton and ran so fast that the scoreboard operator apparently couldn’t believe it. The board initially flashed that Great Britain had won gold, even though Richardson clearly finished first.
