US men win 4x400 relay, avoid matching worst gold total

0 Comments | AFP, August, 2008

BEIJING (AFP) — Jeremy Wariner anchored the US 4x400-meter relay team to victory in an Olympic record 2mins 55.39secs Saturday, enabling the Americans to avoid the shame of matching their worst athletics gold haul.

New 400m Olympic champion LaShawn Merritt, 400m hurdles Olympic champion Angelo Taylor, 400m bronze medallist David Neville and two-time world 400m champion Wariner broke the old mark of 2:55.74 set by the US men in 1992.

It was the fastest showing for a US relay since a world-record effort of 2:54.29 at the 1993 world championships in Stuttgart, Germany.

"We all just gave it our all and ran an Olympic record," Wariner said. "It was close to the world record, the fastest time since then. We have a lot more to come."

US men have won the...