Okolo anchors USA to world gold, American record

IAAF World Indoor Championships
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AUSTIN, Texas – A day after winning her first individual gold medal at a world championship meet, Lifetime Longhorn Courtney Okolo anchored Team USA to gold and an American record in the women's 4x400 meter relay at the IAAF World Indoor Championships from Birmingham, England.

Okolo ran her leg in 50.15 seconds to post a championship record and break the American record with a time of 3:23.85. The victory gives Okolo her second indoor world title in the 4x400 after helping Team USA win two years ago in Portland, Oregon, as well. Team USA's new American record breaks the previous mark of 3:24.83 set in 2014 by just under a full second.

The Longhorns were represented in the men's race as well with Aldrich Bailey Jr. making his Team USA debut. He finished fourth in the men's 400 meters on Saturday and ran the third leg of the men's relay team on Sunday.

Bailey and his American teammates combined to run 3:01.97, with Poland's anchor leg taking the lead in the final moments and clocking a new world record 3:01.77. The time from Team USA ranks as the No. 3 time all-time and was just .01 off the American record.

Okolo's gold medal adds to a long line of success for Longhorn women in the 4x400 on the global stage. It marks the fourth gold medal for a Longhorn at the World Indoor Championships to go with two silvers as well.

With the conclusion of the IAAF World Indoor Championships, Okolo and Bailey helped Team USA dominate the overall medal count. Americans combined to win 18 medals, six of them gold, 10 silver and two bronze. The next closest nation had six total medals.

Okolo and Bailey will now turn their attention to the 2018 outdoor circuit where they are expected to compete in Diamond League meets across the globe and other meets in the U.S.

The University of Texas at Austin Athletics

Okolo anchors USA to world gold, American record