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The Great Britain men's 4x400m relay team was recently presented with their gold medals at the 2025 London Diamond League on Saturday. The side featuring the likes of Roger Black, Iwan Thomas, Jamie Baulch, and Mark Richardson had initially finished second in the competition (1997 World Athletics Championships) after clocking 2:56.65, behind the USA's 2:56.47.
However, one of the USA's team members, late Antonio Pettigrew, was found guilty of doping charges and consuming performance-enhancing drugs. As a result, the gold medal was stripped from them and was awarded to Great Britain.
Notably, several years of waiting after this decision, the team featuring the above-mentioned members and Mark Hylton received their gold medals in front of a packed London Diamond League crowd. Speaking on this, a senior official from UK Athletics, Cherry Alexander, shared that this achievement was not just of their victory but also of their ethos.
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"We're proud to be able to give these athletes their moment in front of a home crowd. It's a chance to recognise not just their talent, but the values they stood for," said Alexander (via BBC).
Notably, Great Britain's 4x100 women's team had also won their Non-Diamond League race at the London Diamond League, while the men's team clinched a second place in their race (Non-Diamond League) at the event.
Iwan Thomas makes his feelings known on receiving the 4x400m gold medal at the London Diamond League after 28 years
Iwan Thomas shared his emotions on receiving the 4x400m relay gold medals after a long wait, following the disqualification of the US team that had initially won the race at the 1997 World Championships. Thomas expressed his disappointment that receiving their medals took this much time.
The 51-year-old also said that he is very happy to receive this honor in front of a packed crowd at the London Diamond League and his kids, who were not even born during the Athens World Championships in 1997.
"On the one hand it's a real shame it’s taken this long. On a personal level, it’s really beautiful today. My son Teddy, who is six, is here today. I didn’t have any children back then. My mum and dad are pretty elderly now. They’re up in the box. For them to be able to see the moment I should have had with the boys 28 years ago, but in front of a British crowd, it felt really special," Thomas was quoted as saying by the Sun.
During his active years in the sport, Iwan Thomas was a formidable 400m racer and clinched victories in this distance at the IAAF World Cup and European Championships. He was also part of the Great Britain team that won the 4x400m silver medal at the 1996 Olympics.
