U.S. Men Win Olympic 4x400 Relay To Avoid A Dubious Record

The U.S. men won the 4x400-meter relay at the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday, but couldn’t leave behind a dreadful overall performance.

Michael Cherry, Michael Norman, Bryce Deadmon and Rai Benjamin teamed to capture the gold in 2:55.70, comfortably ahead of the Netherlands and Botswana to help their country avoid some big-time embarrassment.

Had it not been for their victory, Tokyo would have marked the first time the U.S. men had not won a gold on the track in modern Olympic history, Reuters noted. That goes back to 1896 and excludes the 1980 boycott year.

Ryan Crouser won the shot put for a field event gold in Tokyo, but that was it.

Unless something unforeseen happens in the men’s marathon on Sunday, the gold medal count will still be the worst-ever total by the U.S. men in track and field ― one less than at the 2012 London Olympics, USA Today wrote.