After three editions in the Bahamas, the fourth IAAF World Relays were held over the weekend in Yokohama, Japan. With their carnival-like atmosphere, live music and raucous crowds, the World Relays have developed a reputation as one of the IAAF's funnest events. Although, I think a lot of what made the World Relays such a party had to do with the location. Because I didn't get a sense there was any of that in the stands this weekend.
In the Bahamas, they would have a sellout crowd on both days, and they'd go nuts the entire time. Those Caribbean fans weren't going all the way to Japan, though, and the Japanese fans didn't seem to embrace the event nearly as much. That might be bit of an unfair comparison, but the stadium was gigantic. It was built for the 2002 World Cup. As a result, they didn't sell the upper deck, which made it look a lot emptier than it probably was. (Although, the crowd on Sunday did look bigger than the one on Saturday.)
To say that the crowds were disappointing would be an understatement. Yokohama is only about 20 minutes outside of Tokyo, and the World Relays were, in many respects, viewed as a test-run for next summer's Olympics. And, seeing as people had to wait hours when they officially opened the lottery the other day, we know that the stadiums will be full then. It's just that this event doesn't resonate as much as the Olympics.
There are plenty of reasons for that to be sure. First and foremost, the World Relays are still new and people (athletes included) are still figuring out what to make of them. They tied in qualifying for the World Championships in the 4x100 and 4x400, but there were still a lot of countries that didn't bother showing up and those that did didn't necessarily send their A teams.
The World Relays are also still trying to find their footing in a crowded international track & field landscape. In that vein, they keep tinkering with the events, trying to find the right balance. This was the fourth World Relays, and the program has been different each time. And you can bet it'll look different again at the next World Relays in 2021.
This is where the IAAF tries things, and some of those innovations have caught on. The World Relays gave us instantaneous medal ceremonies, and it was at the World Relays where they started doing those one-by-one team introductions that have become popular with the fans and athletes alike. The World Relays is also where the mixed 4x400 relay made its international debut, and that event worked so well that it's been added to both the World Championship and Olympic programs.
I'll admit that I was skeptical about the mixed 4x400 relay at first, but I've since come around. The first one was held in 2017. The final was the last event of the meet, and the Bahamas staged an epic comeback on the final leg to beat the United States for gold. It was the best race of the meet. And it's the one mixed event in track & field that works, which is why it was added to the Olympics (as a part of the IOC's new obsession with mixed events).
Looking to repeat that success, they added two more mixed events at this year's World Relays, the reaction to which wasn't the best. The first was the 2x2x400 relay, which ended up being as stupid as it sounds. It's basically an 800 workout. Run a 400, rest for a minute, run another 400. It was dumb and unnecessary.
What made things worse is that they took the 4x800 out to add it. Hopefully they reconsider that change for the 2021 World Relays. Because there wasn't really a good reason to get rid of the 4x800, which turned the World Relays into essentially a sprint-only meet (although the 2x2x400 teams were made up of 800 runners). And they can't blame it on lack of entries, which was a problem they still had in the events that were contested.
They also added a mixed shuttle hurdles, which is fine, I guess. Even though the men run 110 meters and the women's hurdles are only a 100, they found a way to make it work. I wish they'd had the foresight to have a "B" final, though. Because they ended up with no bronze medalist. Since every team needs two lanes, you can only have four at a time. But Jamaica didn't start the final due to an injury, leaving them with three, which became two after Australia false started. If there had been a "B" final, the winner of that could've gotten the bronze medal (just like when the Netherlands set a world record in the "B" final of the short track relay in PyeongChang).
Frankly, because of the different distances, I'd prefer to see a men's shuttle hurdles and a women's shuttle hurdles. But if the IAAF wants to keep the mixed version, I'd have no problem with it. They need to consider a way to avoid a two-team final, though. And, if they are committed to it, they need to get more countries interested in doing it, seeing as there were just seven teams in the shuttle hurdles to being with.
Some people were also critical of the World Relays' scheduling, which had the three 4x400 finals back-to-back-to-back, and the two 4x100 finals after both 4x200 finals. That made it difficult for athletes to compete in more than one event (but not impossible, because some did try it).
While that's a reasonable criticism, it's also unavoidable at a two-day event like this. Yes, it made it more difficult, especially since most nations don't have the six quality 400-meter runners necessary to field a competitive team in all three races. At the World Championships and Olympics, when the program is spread over 10 days, that's not an issue. But when you only have two days to work with, there's no possible way to create enough separation in the schedule to make it doable (although, one solution might be to have the mixed 4x400 start the day and the men's and women's 4x400s as the last two events, which would leave at least a little bit of a gap).
As expected, the United States dominated, winning five gold medals and finishing on the podium in every event. That's apparently not enough for some people, either. I guess they expected the U.S. to go 9-for-9 and weren't willing to accept anything less than that. Which is not only ridiculous, it would be horrible for the sport.
Because for the World Relays to work, you can't have everyone going in just expecting the U.S. to win everything. That's why none of the European countries go to World Cross, where they know they're going to lose to the Kenyans and Ethiopians. And, to be honest, the races that the U.S. loses generally turn out to be the best races at the World Relays (take that mixed 4x400 in 2017 and both single-gender 4x400s this year).
Ultimately, though, the World Relays serve their purpose, and the 2019 edition was no different in that respect. They were fun, there was some good competition, and the athletes got some quality early-season competition. It gave some different events and countries a chance to shine, too, and that's never a bad thing.
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