The elimination in the 4×400 meters has hit hard for both the women and the men. The women missed the World Cup final due to a dropped baton and disqualification, while the men in the series in Eugene were one-hundredth short of a place in the final battle.
“We will all cry together soon,” said Lieke Klaver on Saturday evening (local time) after the dramatic races of the Dutch teams. “It’s going to be crying for a hundredth,” Terrence Agard said.
After the Olympic silver of the men’s team last year in Tokyo and the silver earlier this World Cup in the 4×400 meters mixed, much was expected from both the men and the women in Eugene.
The men’s team – with Nick Smidt, Ramsey Angela and Isayah Boers in addition to Agard – disappointed somewhat with a fifth place in the series, after which the formation depended on the times in the other series. The Dutch foursome watched and saw things go wrong in one hundredth. France clocked 3.03.13 and thus grabbed the last ticket for Sunday’s final battle.
“That did cut in,” said Angela. “We didn’t come to the World Cup for this.”
The four Dutch men of the 4×400 meters.
The four Dutch men of the 4×400 meters. Photo: AP
‘The stick rolled 20 centimeters’
The women’s team was still living between hope and fear at that time, after a chaotic series with a mistake. The baton fell at the switch between Klaver and Cathelijn Peeters. Peeters picked up the baton, after which the Netherlands finished third, mainly thanks to final runner Femke Bol. That would have been enough, but a few minutes later the Dutch foursome saw that the jury had disqualified.
“After the baton had fallen, it rolled further 20 centimeters. Cathelijn therefore had to go back 20 centimeters before she continued,” Klaver explained. “Or I should have done that. At least, that’s what we have now understood from the jury. We didn’t know it either.”
The Athletics Union filed a protest against the disqualification. “The coaches and other leadership have read all the rules to see what they could challenge,” Klaver continued. “But in the end, these are the rules,” Bol added. “It’s such a shame because we have a super strong team.”
Slideshow: The wrong switch of the Netherlands in the picture
‘Maybe we should organize a meeting sometime’
The union’s protest was therefore rejected. Klaver argued that it might be good to clarify all the rules for the next tournament.
“Maybe we should organize a meeting sometime to put everything together. There are so many rules in a relay and so strict. And the speed and adrenaline during a race don’t make it any easier to do exactly what the rules must.”
Bol: “Hopefully this won’t happen again during the European Championship next month. I hope we can show how good we are there.”