Saminu explains baton mishap in 4x100m disappointment

Ghana’s sprinter Abdul Rasheed Saminu has opened up about the baton exchange mishap that led to the disqualification of the national 4x100m relay team at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

The team, which finished sixth in their heat, was disqualified after officials identified a changeover violation during the final leg of the race.

Saminu, who also competed in the 100m events alongside Benjamin Azamati, admitted that there was an issue during the initial baton handoff.

“I think with the first call, I missed the hand, so I had to bring it back again to make the legal contact,” Saminu explained in an interview with JoySports. “Next time we just make sure we correct the mistakes and come back again.”

The team’s disqualification marks a disappointing end to Ghana’s campaign in the 4x100m relay, repeating a similar fate from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics where a baton exchange error also cost them in the final.

• Changeover error again? Ghanaians react to 4x100m team’s disqualification
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• Paris 2024: Ghana disqualified in 4x100m relay, ending medal hopes

The time of 38.62 seconds recorded in Paris was their slowest in recent years, compared to previous marks of 38.07s, 38.08s, and 38.29s.

With no remaining athletes in the competition, Ghana’s track and field events at Paris 2024 have come to an unfortunate close following a series of setbacks.

Ghana also competed in swimming and high jump but had no place in the medal zone of those events.