USA Makes History as Alexis Holmes Beats Femke Bol by 1.16 Seconds to Win Mixed Relay

Team USA made history while winning the gold medal in the 4x400-meter mixed relay race at the 2025 Track and Field World Championships.

Alexis Holmes, running anchor for the U.S. team, crossed the finish line 1.16 seconds ahead of Femke Bol of the Netherlands for the win.

Team USA set a record at the event with a finishing time of 3:08.80. The Netherlands won silver with a time of 3:09.96, followed by Belgium in third with a time of 3:10.61.

The race opened with Mthi Mthimkulu of South Africa posting the fastest time on the first leg, but it didn't take long for the U.S. to catch up after Lynna Irby-Jackson received the handoff from Bryce Deadmon.

Irby-Jackson moved into the lead around the 600-meter mark, finished her leg in 49.1 seconds, and the United States never looked back from there.

Toby Harries of Great Britain did a good job initially on the third leg of closing the gap and putting some pressure on Jenoah McKiver before falling off the pace. McKiver ran the fastest split of anyone in the race at 43.91 seconds.

Despite the big advantage for the Americans entering the final leg, Holmes did have to be mindful of Bol's ability to close a gap in rapid time. The Dutch standout took her team from fourth at the start of her leg to a gold medal in this event at the 2024 Olympics.

Holmes made sure there would no upset this time around, despite Bol's best efforts to make the race closer than it looked like it was going to be. Bol still managed to get the Netherlands the silver medal after starting in fifth place when she received the baton.

"I definitely wanted to bring it home for my teammates, and I'm glad I got the job done," Holmes said after the race.

This marks the second straight gold medal for Team USA in the 4x400-meter mixed relay at the World Athletics Championship. The 2023 team with Justin Robinson, Rosey Effiong, Matthew Boling and Holmes also won with a time of 3:08.80.