USA Disqualified from Women's 4x400 Relay for Illegal Pass at 2023 World Championship

The U.S. women's 4x400 relay team was disqualified from the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary due to a missed baton handoff in a heat, the AP reported.

The U.S. women's team has won this relay at seven of the last eight World Championships, and they have claimed seven straight Olympic golds in the event dating back to 1996.

Quanera Hayes, the third runner in the relay, was unable to hand the baton to the anchor runner, Alexis Holmes.

On Hayes' first attempt, Holmes turned around before the handoff had been completed. Hayes made several more attempts to pass the baton, but the handoff only occurred once the runners appeared to be outside of the blue box demarcating the legal passing zone.

The U.S. team is likely to appeal the disqualification, Mitch Phillips reported for Reuters.

American relay teams have dealt with several high-profile baton exchange issues in the past. Most recently, a baton exchange initially ruled as faulty during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics almost disqualified Team USA from the 4x400 mixed relay finals before they were reinstated following an appeal.