The Australian men’s 4 x 400m relay team have missed out on qualification to the final at the 2011 World Athletics Championships in Moscow.
Sam Maxwell Sports Management athlete Ben Offereins helped the Aussies clock the ninth fastest time in Australian 4 x 400 relay history – 3:01.56 – but it was still outside the time required to proceed to the final.
Offereins ran the lead-leg before handing the baton over in third place to Tristan Thomas. The Aussies fell to fifth by the second baton change but still only trailed the second-placed Bahamas by 0.39 seconds.
Steve Solomon and Sean Wroe both ran sub 45 second splits in the third and fourth legs to give Australia every chance of finishing in the top 3 to qualify for the final. However their runs proved in vain as Belgium, Kenya and the Bahamas staved off their challenge. Russia ran over the top of the Aussies thanks to a fast 44.52 split from Russia’s Pavel Trenikhinm taking his nation from sixth to first in the third leg and leaving the Australians to settle for fifth.