Powell, renowned for his blistering speed having held the 100m world record at 9.77 and 9.74s, missed out on the opportunity to join the likes of Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, Yohan Blake, and Usain Bolt in that record-breaking relay team due to a groin injury sustained during the final of the 100m.
Gatlin, reflecting on the potential of the Jamaican squad, speculated that adding Powell to the mix could have propelled them to an astonishing 36.5-second mark.
"Adding Asafa Powell to that already formidable lineup of Bolt, Blake, Carter, and Frater could have pushed the team to an even faster time," Gatlin remarked on his podcast. Powell's absence, while the team still delivered Olympic gold, left room for speculation on just how much quicker they could have been.
Gatlin, a seasoned sprinter himself, understands the unique pressure and responsibility that comes with relay events. "There is a difference between being an individual runner at the Olympics or world championships and being part of a relay team," he explained. "If you falter as an individual, it's on you; but in a relay, it's on the country's back."
Reflecting on the challenges of breaking a world record in relay events, Gatlin emphasized the need for everything to align perfectly. "36.8 is a gigantic order. 37 low is a tall order," he admitted. "Everyone needs to be in peak condition and ready to run."
Looking ahead to the future, Gatlin also weighed in on Team USA's chances of breaking the 12-year-long Jamaican 4x100m relay world record in 2024. "It's going to take a near-perfect performance from a team firing on all cylinders to surpass what Jamaica achieved in 2012," Gatlin predicted.
Both athletes will be contesting specially arranged 60m races as they ramp up preparations for the Olympics in Tokyo, Japan this summer.
Also down to compete are several elite athletes from UTech, Sprint Tech, GC Foster College and Racers Track Club. Several of Jamaica’s top high schools including Kingston College Calabar, Jamaica College, St. Jago, The Queen’s School, and Wolmers have also been confirmed for the meet that will be held at the National Stadium in Kingston.
As a qualifying meet for the ISSA Boys and Girls Championships, athletes will compete in a number of events including the 200M, 400M, 4x400M, long jump and high jump.
The 35-year-old, who was part of Jamaica’s world record gold-winning 4x100m relay team at the London Olympics, made the announcement, on Tuesday, via social media platform Twitter.
“…I am no longer able to give of my best as an athlete to the sport that I know and love. As a result, and for other reasons, I am announcing my retirement from track and field and an athlete,” the release read.
“My ultimate decision to retire from athletics was also precipitated by a private medical condition, which has been getting worse. This condition has hindered me from training and competing since March 2021. A medication prescribed by my doctor to address this medical issue breaches existing anti-doping rules. As such, I had to make a choice between my health and athletics, and I chose my health.”
The athlete was also part of Jamaica’s gold medal-winning relay team at the 2008 Olympics, but the medal was stripped after a retrospective test returned a positive sample from Carter. The athlete was also part of a gold medal-winning relay team at the 2011, 2013, and 2015 World Championships. Carter claimed an individual bronze medal at the 2013 World Championships and has the eighth fastest time ever recorded over the distance.
Speaking after a press conference in Jamaica last week Thursday before he participated in the Jamaica Athletics Invitational on Saturday, Coleman emphasized the USA's recent relay performance of 37.40 at recent World Relays in the Bahamas, despite key athletes like himself, Fred Kerley, and Erriyon Knighton missing from the team.
A member of the USA team that ran 37.10 at the 2019 World Championships in Doha, Coleman suggested that his country’s top sprinters executing the essential elements of relay running like smoother baton exchanges, could lead to significant improvements.
"I think it's really not that difficult. It's not that hard. We make it a lot harder than it needs to be," Coleman explained. "If we just space those zones out, everybody focuses on their job, I think we have all the speed and talent to tackle that world record."
Coleman's confidence in the team's abilities underscores their ambitions for the upcoming track and field season, especially at the Olympic Games in Paris where the USA will start as hot favourites to win the gold medal.
While breaking records isn't the primary focus, Coleman believes that with proper execution and teamwork, they can challenge historic achievements like Jamaica's 4x100m world record.
With that in mind, what leg does Coleman believe is the best fit for him?
"We talk about it all the time because I feel like I can do first leg just because I know what I'm gonna do. I feel like when I do my thing, it takes a lot of the pressure off the rest of the team because I'm gonna get us out and I know when the stick is moving through that zone and second leg is going down the back-stretch and we already in the lead, everybody else can just kind of relax and just bring it home.
“But I feel if we just going in terms of trying to just run our absolute best time, I don't know if it might be suitable for me to run first leg, ‘because I feel like I'm full well capable of running any leg. I trust myself more than anybody when it comes to working the zone and getting it through. So I don't know, second, third, fourth, whatever they need me at, obviously I'm gonna do it.”
On Saturday, Coleman was fifth in the 200m in 20.46. Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes claimed victory with a sizzling run of 19.96. The USA’s Fred Kerley was second in 20.17 with Frenchman Pablo Mateo not far behind in 20.20 for third.
According to meet organizer Ray Harvey, MVP Track Club, UTech and Speed Unit Track Club, requested that he add three 60-metres races the schedule. As a result, the first of those three races will be run at 9:40 am.
In that race, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce will line up alongside Shauna Helps, Jodean Williams, Ezinne Okparaebo of Norway and four other athletes.
In the second race Utech athletes Ojamu Graham, Marcus Brown and Tarisco Bell will line up against five other athletes including Chaquille Sam of Montserrat.
The final 60-metre dash former 100m world record holder Asafa Powell will face World Long Jump champion Tajay Gayle and Nesta Carter.
Julian Forte, Austin Hamilton of Sweden are also listed among the starters.
Ray Harvey said the races are expected to be a treat for all the spectators who turn up to the venue on Saturday.
The 36-year-old Carter announced his retirement from track and field in August, at that time stating that medical condition had not allowed him to train since March, and insisting he was putting his health over his career.
According to reports, Carter returned an adverse analytical finding for the substance, clomiphene, which can alter male testosterone levels. The former athlete has insisted that the substance was in a medication prescribed by his physician while he was out of competition.
The ban was the second for the sprinter, who retrospectively tested positive from a sample, taken at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, in 2016. The substance was methylhexanamine.
The positive test led to Jamaica being stripped of their Beijing 2008 gold in the men's 4x100 metres. The decision was handed down by the Jamaica Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel.
Thompson, 29, has been named to the 4x100 relay squad that includes Natasha Morrison, Natalliah Whyte, Remona Burchell, Kasheika Cameron and Shashalee Forbes.
She, Whyte, and Forbes are also down to compete in the 4x200m relay along with Candice McLeod, Tiffany James and Anastasia LeRoy.
Jamaica’s 4x100m team will comprise Powell, Oshane Bailey, Nesta Carter, Julian Forte, Nigel Ellis, Romario Willams and Kadrain Goldson while Goldson, Ellis, Williams, and Michael Bentley will make up the 4x200M team.
Meanwhile, Jackson heads up a women’s 4x400m squad that includes Stephenie-Ann McPherson, Shiann Salmon, Janieve Russell, Rhonda Whyte, Tovea Jenkins, Roneisha McGregor and Christine Day.
The men’s team will have Zadrian Barnes, Troy Whyte, Javon Francis, Terry Thomas, Keeno Burrell, Jamoi Jackson, Demar Murray, and Nathon Allen.
Rasheed Broadbelt, Ronald Levy, Deuce Carter, Janeek Brown, Megan Tapper, and will Jeanine Williams contest the Mixed Shuttle Hurdles.
The team will be managed by Marvin Anderson, who will be assisted by Craig Richards. Paul Francis will be the Technical leader and will have coaches Jerry Holness, Bertland Cameron and Lamar Richards as his support.
Dr Anthony Cox has been named Team Doctor.
Richard Thompson, Marc Burns, Keston Bledman, Emmanuel Callender and Aaron Armstrong received their medals in a short Olympic medal reallocation ceremony at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland, Tuesday.
At the 2008 Olympics, Jamaica won the men’s 4x100m event, led by legendary sprinter Usain Bolt.
However, in 2017, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) revealed that Nesta Carter, who ran the lead-off leg for the Jamaican quartet, had violated the anti-doping code by testing positive for methylhexaneamine.
Jamaica was subsequently disqualified and T&T, who had earned silver, were announced as the new winners.
At the ceremony on Tuesday, IOC president Thomas Bach said the IOC's goal was to protect the clean athletes and that he knew the T&T athletes would have liked to experience such a special moment at the 2008 Games
After Bach spoke, the T&T athletes were introduced and brought on stage. After receiving their medals, president of the T&T Olympic Committee Diane Henderson presented all the athletes with a bouquet of flowers.
The national anthem was played and then pictures were taken with the T&T flag.
The athletes were accompanied by members of their family.
Bledman, Marc Burns, Emmanuel Callender, Richard “Torpedo” Thompson and Aaron Armstrong all made the trip to Lausanne for the Medal Reallocation Ceremony, hosted at the Olympic Museum.
International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach presented the gold medals to the T&T sprinters.
Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee (TTOC) president Diane Henderson also attended the ceremony and presented flowers to the quintet. Second in the Beijing 2008 4x1 final, T&T were promoted to gold as a result of Jamaican Nesta Carter’s doping violation.
First Citizens Sports Foundation committee member Kwame Laurence and TTOC immediate past president Brian Lewis were at Piarco on Thursday to greet Bledman on his return home.
Also at Piarco were 2022 Caribbean Youth Table Tennis Championship boys’ under-19 singles bronze medallist Derron Douglas who was a youth nominee for the 2021 First Citizens Sports Foundation Awards.
Bledman last competed in 2021. He is now retired and has switched his focus to coaching. He lives in Florida with his wife Afiya Bledman (formerly Walker) and their daughters, Zion and Zendaya.
