PARIS, France – The final day of the track and field events at the Paris Olympic Games saw Kentucky Track and Field athletes achieve a remarkable feat, securing four medals, including three golds, and setting a new program record with a total of six medals.
Masai Russell claimed gold in the 100m hurdles, triumphing in a thrilling photo finish. Jasmine Camacho-Quinn, the previous gold medalist from the Tokyo Olympics, added a bronze to her collection in the same event. This marks the second consecutive Olympics where a Kentucky athlete has won gold in the 100m hurdles and where two Wildcats have reached the podium in that event.
In the women’s 4x400m relay, Kentucky athletes comprised half of the gold medal-winning team that also set a new American record. Alexis Holmes earned her first Olympic medal while Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone won her second gold of the Games and fourth overall. The U.S. team clocked in at 3:15.27, achieving the second fastest time in history and finishing just one-tenth of a second shy of the World Record. McLaughlin-Levrone ran the second leg, establishing an unassailable lead for the USA, while Holmes anchored the team, finishing well ahead of the silver medal-winning Dutch squad. Both McLaughlin-Levrone and Holmes previously won SEC titles in this relay during their time at Kentucky, with Holmes also securing an NCAA title in 2022.
In the 100m hurdles final, three of the eight competitors hailed from Kentucky, but it was Masai Russell, a graduate of 2023, who emerged victorious. The first-time Olympian executed a remarkable lean at the finish line to secure the gold with a time of 12.33 seconds, winning by a minuscule margin of one one-hundredth of a second. This victory marks the continuation of Kentucky’s success in this event, following Camacho-Quinn’s gold in Tokyo.
Russell, who holds the collegiate record in the 100m hurdles, faced the strongest competition in the event’s history during her first major international final. She previously won the US Olympic Team Trials in a world-leading time of 12.25 seconds, solidifying her place in the Paris Games.
Camacho-Quinn’s bronze medal makes her the first Puerto Rican athlete in Olympic history to achieve multiple medals, adding to her gold from Tokyo. The three-time NCAA champion completed the race in 12.36 seconds, reinforcing her status as the Olympic record holder and joining fellow Wildcat McLaughlin-Levrone as a double Olympic medalist.
Also competing in the 100m hurdles final was Devynne Charlton, a Volunteer Assistant Coach, who finished sixth with a time of 12.56 seconds. The Bahamian athlete, who trains in Lexington with Russell, previously secured sixth place in Tokyo and is known as the world record holder in the indoor 60m hurdles.
Overall, Kentucky Track and Field concluded their performances at the Paris Olympics with six medals – four golds, one silver, and one bronze – surpassing their previous record of five medals from the Tokyo Games.