IRELAND FINISHED EIGHTH in the 4x400m mixed relay final as the opening day of the World Athletics Championships came to a close in Oregon on Friday.
Earlier in the day, the Irish quartet of Chris O’Donnell, Sophie Becker, Jack Raftery and Rhasidat Adeleke had produced a season’s best 3:13.88 to finish second in their heat and book their place in the world final.
Illness prevented Adeleke from running again in the final, Sharlene Mawdsley taking her place for the anchor leg, and Ireland could not repeat their earlier performance, clocking 3:18.86.
At the head of proceedings, Allyson Felix signed off her glittering career with a 19th world medal, but the US track legend was denied a golden goodbye by the Dominican Republic and Netherlands in a grandstand finale.
The Dominican Republic’s Fiordaliza Cofil (3:09.82) and Dutch superstar Femke Bol (3:09.90) reeled in a tiring Kennedy Simon in the home straight to take gold and silver respectively, and relegate the Americans to bronze (3:10.16).
It was not quite the dream swansong for the 36-year-old Felix, who received the baton from Elija Godwin on the second leg at Hayward Field but let the lead slip.
Although Vernon Norwood made up the deficit, Dominican anchor Cofil reeled in Felix’s Simon, who went out fast and paid the price as she flagged coming down the home stretch.
Either way, the bronze brought the curtain down on a stellar career that saw Felix make her world championship debut back in Paris in 2003 at the age of 17.
A year later she won 200m silver in the Athens Olympics, the start of an unprecedented glut of medals in the 200m, 400m and as a member of the often dominant US relay team.
Her overall world tally now stands at 19 medals (13 gold, three silver, three bronze), including four individual golds.
– Additional reporting © AFP 2022
