Team U.S.A. won five of the 10 races at the world relays

Mon, May 26th 2014, 11:53 PM

The United States of America (USA) came, they saw and they conquered!
Taking part in all of the relays this past weekend, our neighbors to the west got a comfortable team victory to cart off the "Golden Baton", given to the overall winner of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) World Relays Bahamas 2014. Team USA, 55 members strong, finished with 60 total points to easily out-distance second place finisher Jamaica. Jamaica ended up second overall, with 41 points. Kenya was third, with 35 points; Great Britain & Northern Ireland was fourth, with 24 points, and Australia rounded out the top five, with 21 points.
The Bahamas ended up eighth, with 15 points, as three Bahamian teams qualified for the finals. The men's 4x400 meters (m) team was second, the women's 4x200m relay team finished fourth, and the men's 4x200m relay team was sixth. However, just one of the four teams qualified for the 2015 Beijing World Championships, as the other events are not contested at the world championships. The men and women's 4x100m relay teams, and the women's 4x400m relay team would have to qualify at a later date in order to make it to Beijing, as only the top eight teams at the world relays qualified.
For the U.S. at these inaugural IAAF World Relays Bahamas 2014, it would be their 4x400m teams which led the way. The U.S. won both races, taking the women's race in 3:21.73, and capturing the men's four-lap race in 2:57.25. The women's 4x100m, women's 4x200m and women's 4x800m relay teams also came out on top over the weekend, as they took five of the 10 relay races in the two-day meet at the Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium.
Kenya won three relays, the men and women's 1,500m in word record times, and they also took the men's 4x800m. Jamaica won the other two relay events, the men's 4x100m, and the men's 4x200m event in a world record time.
Overall, three world records were set this weekend, the first three world records ever ran in athletics on Bahamian soil.
In prize money, The Bahamas' men's 4x400m relay team of Chris Brown, Demetrius Pinder, Michael Mathieu, LaToy Williams and Ramon Miller earned $30,000 for their second place finish in the men's 4x400m. The women's 4x200m relay team of Sheniqua Ferguson, Cache Armbrister, Anthonique Strachan and Nivea Smith won $12,000 for their fourth place finish, and the men's 4x200m relay team of Blake Bartlett, Adrian Griffith, Wesley Neymour and Andretti Bain earned $8,000 to share for their sixth place finish.
A total of $50,000 was given for first place, $30,000 for second, $20,000 for third, $12,000 for fourth, $10,000 for fifth, $8,000 for sixth, $6,000 for seventh, and $4,000 for eighth.
In addition to the $1.4 million in prize money, a total of $50,000 was given for each world record.
The U.S. men's 4x400m relay team of David Verburg, Tony McQuay, Christian Taylor and LaShawn Merritt might not have set a world record, but the quartet ran the world's leading time of 2:57.25. The Bahamas settled for second in 2:57.59, the third fastest time ever ran by a Bahamian quartet, and Trinidad & Tobago set a new national record of 2:58.34 for third.
"We came here and we wanted to win," said Merritt after that impressive win on Sunday night. "We knew that The Bahamas was going to be tough to beat at home in front of their crowd, but we were able to put it together. All of the guys ahead of me ran a good leg, and I did my part on the anchor leg. It was an overall team effort by us, and we got the job done. I just want to thank everyone for their support. Everyone here has been so receptive, and the crowd in this stadium was wonderful. The Bahamas has been a great host, and we look forward to coming back."
The world relays is set to return to The Bahamas in 2015. When the country won the bid to host the inaugural event in 2014, it was contingent on the hosting of the event in 2015 as well.
Overall, there might have been a few glitches, but hardly anyone could complain with the quality of event that took place.
The Bahamas' first ever global track and field meet proved to be truly successful. Almost 600 athletes from 43 countries gave the thousands of fans in attendance two days of intense competition and thrilling performances.
It was truly a fantastic cultural and sporting display inside the Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium this past weekend.
The Bahamas might have won just one medal, but the 24-member team has quite a bit to be proud about as they represented well at home before a most appreciative audience.
IAAF World Relays Bahamas 2014

Final results
1st - United States - 60 points
2nd - Jamaica - 41 points
3rd - Kenya - 35 points
4th - Great Britain & N.I. - 24 points
5th - Australia - 21 points
6th - Trinidad and Tobago - 19 points
7th - France - 18 points
8th - The Bahamas - 15 points
9th - Poland - 14 points
10th - Nigeria - 13 points

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