Andre De Grasse competes in the men’s 200-metre semi-finals in Saint-Denis, on Aug. 7.Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press
Andre De Grasse is looking to toughen it out for his team in hopes of earning a medal at the Paris Olympics.
The Canadian men’s 4x100-metre relay team of Aaron Brown, Jerome Blake, Brendon Rodney and De Grasse ran a time of 38.39 seconds to finish third in Heat 2 on Thursday at Stade de France. That was enough to qualify for Friday’s final.
De Grasse had revealed Wednesday night after failing to qualify for the men’s 200 final that he was battling a hamstring injury he re-aggravated a few days ago. He had also failed to advance to the 100 final on Sunday, his first time missing an Olympic final.
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“I’ve been with these guys for the last, what is it, nine years. The three of us, 2015 we won our first (worlds) medal,” De Grasse said. “Jerome joined us in Tokyo in 2021.
“These guys are like my brothers, we’ve been together all this time and I want to be there for them so I’m going to do my best, I got one more race and just gotta toughen it out and go from there.”
It’s not the first time this has happened with De Grasse and the Canadian relay team. Battling a toe injury and recently coming off a bout with COVID-19, De Grasse missed the 100 final, pulled out of the 200 but competed in the 4x100 at the 2022 world championships.
There, the six-time Olympic medallist helped Canada to a gold medal with a legendary anchor leg.
This time around, De Grasse aims to lay it out all out there one more time. Canada took bronze at the Rio Games in 2016 and silver at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 before winning the world title in 2022.
“I love the sport, I want to be out there. It’s one last race, hopefully my adrenalin and everything could just take me through it and we try to come away with a medal,” he said.
“We’ve been talking about this moment, we want to go out there and do our best for our country, for our family and friends. Just gotta go out there, one last race, make it happen, just leave it all out there on the line.”
As for what could be fixed, Brown pointed to the team’s passes. Rodney had Canada in first before his exchange with De Grasse slowed them down a bit.
“Zone passes for sure, especially that last one was just awful, amateur stuff,” Brown said. “Hey, it is what it is. That’s why we watch film and make adjustments.
“That’s why I always say, don’t be fooled by the prelims. We didn’t show our best today but we’ll be ready for tomorrow night.”
The Canadian women’s 4x100 relay team also qualified for Friday’s final. Sade McCreath, Jacqueline Madogo, Marie-Eloise Leclair and Audrey Leduc ran a national record of 42.50 seconds to finish fourth in Heat 2 and grab one of two non-automatic qualifier spots.
“Anything can happen in the final so obviously it’s always a goal to get on the podium,” Leduc said. “But I think if we can run even faster or execute the race even better, that’s something we’ll be happy with. Maybe even another national record tomorrow.”
“I think we’re putting the women’s program back on the map,” Madogo added. “I think they’ve (men) had enough spotlight, I think it’s our turn. We’re coming in hot.”
Sarah Mitton advanced to the women’s shot put final with a top throw of 19.77 metres on her first attempt and didn’t throw again.
The nearest throw to Mitton’s was 19.25 by New Zealand’s Maddison-Lee Wesche. The qualifying standard was 19.15 or to be among the 12 top performers for Friday’s final.
The 28-year-old from Brooklyn, N.S., earned silver at the 2023 world championships and won the world indoor title in March. Mitton has a personal and season best of 20.68 metres from May.
Mitton said she’s as ready as she’s “ever been for a meet” regarding the final and that qualifying on her first throw was an ideal scenario. She looks to become the first Canadian woman to earn an Olympic medal in shot put.
“One and done just gives you a lot of confidence,” she said. “I feel very confident in my throw in general. That felt very controlled.”
In the women’s 400 hurdles final Thursday night, Savannah Sutherland of Borden, Sask., finished seventh with a time of 53.88 seconds in her Olympic debut.
Sutherland, who turned 21 on Wednesday, is the Canadian record holder and the 2023 NCAA champion in the event before earning silver this year competing for the University of Michigan.
“Just overwhelming,” she said of her Olympic experience. “I think that the atmosphere out there was insane and it really pushed some girls to some really fast times.
“It’s just unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. I’ve ran in stadiums before but nothing like this.”
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