Richardson Anchors US to 4x100m Relay World Title

Sha'Carri Richardson anchored the United States to a commanding victory in the women's 4x100m relay at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, completing a golden week for the American sprinter.

A championship record born on the third bend

The race turned decisively on the third leg. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce had rocketed Jamaica into the lead with a storming second run, leaving the US quartet playing catch-up at the halfway stage.

Then Gabby Thomas took the baton. A supreme bend runner, she produced a presidential performance that furnished Richardson with a solid lead before the anchor leg ever began.

When Richardson and Shericka Jackson stepped up for the anchors, the contest for gold was already in American hands. A two-metre gap was never going to be surrendered.

Two titles, one championship mark

Richardson charged down the home straight and crossed the line clear in front, stopping the clock at 41.03 seconds. The time broke the championship record Jamaica set in Daegu in 2011 by 0.04 seconds.

Jamaica took silver with Jackson on the anchor and Great Britain & NI claimed bronze in 41.97. The victory meant the United States successfully retained the title won in Eugene the previous year.

It was Richardson's second gold of the championships, arriving five days after her individual 100m crown in 10.65. She departed Budapest with two gold medals and a 200m bronze, a career-best return at her first World Championships.

Richardson, backed on the opening legs by Tamari Davis and Twanisha Terry, anchored the third consecutive world relay gold for the US and part of a rare sweep that included the men's 4x100m title the same evening.

A lead built on a precise bend run and a championship-record finish defined a relay effort that left nothing to chance.