Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's 4 × 100 metres relay
The men's 4 × 100 metres relay competition at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom, was held at the Olympic Stadium on 10–11 August.
Overview
On 11 August, the Jamaican national team, led by Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, Yohan Blake and Usain Bolt, won the gold medal and broke their own world record of 37.04 set at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics, with a time of 36.84.Carter did not start well, and Trell Kimmons of the United States led the first 100 metres. Kimmons handed the baton to former world champion and Olympic champion Justin Gatlin, who was in the lead. By the third changeover, America had a slight lead over the Jamaicans, but when Michael Frater handed over to Yohan Blake, Blake took the final bend and made up ground and overtook Tyson Gay of the USA. Blake then passed the baton to Bolt slightly ahead of Gay's pass to Ryan Bailey. In the final 100 metres, Bolt extended that lead to a few metres and crossed the line in a new world-record time for his country for the second consecutive Olympics, with the USA finishing second. Although the Canadian team finished third, they were disqualified after third leg runner Jared Connaughton stepped on a line, and the bronze medal went to Trinidad and Tobago.
While the Jamaican team were breaking the world record, the American team crossed the line in exactly the same time as the previous record of 37.04 seconds, setting a new national record.
In May 2015, U.S. had its silver medal stripped because Tyson Gay's suspension for drug use, which was caught in 2014. The official result was revised and marked "Disqualified for doping" next to the USA; the medals were reallocated, with Trinidad and Tobago awarded silver, and France the bronze.
Records
Prior to the competition, the existing World and Olympic records were as follows.| World record | 37.04 | Daegu, South Korea | ||
| Olympic record | Michael Marsh Leroy Burrell Dennis Mitchell Carl Lewis | 37.40 | Barcelona | 8 August 1992 |
| 2012 world leading |  Racers Track Club | 37.82 | Kingston, Jamaica | 14 April 2012 |
The following records were established during the competition:
| Date | Event | Name | Nationality | Time | Record |
| 11 August | Final | Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, Yohan Blake, Usain Bolt | 36.84 | , | |
| Round 1 | Brian Mariano, Churandy Martina, Giovanni Codrington, Patrick van Luijk | 38.29 | NR | ||
| 10 August | Round 1 | Guo Fan, Liang Jiahong, Su Bingtian, Zhang Peimeng | 38.38 | NR | |
| 10 August | Round 1 | Lestrod Roland, Jason Rogers, Antoine Adams, Brijesh Lawrence | 38.41 | NR | |
| 10 August | Round 1 | Anthony Alozie, Isaac Ntiamoah, Andrew McCabe, Josh Ross | 38.17 | =AR | |
| 10 August | Round 1 | Kamil Masztak, Dariusz Kuć, Robert Kubaczyk, Kamil Kryński | 38.31 | NR |
Schedule
All times are British Summer Time| Date | Time | Round |
| Friday, 10 August 2012 | 19:45 | Round 1 |
| Saturday, 11 August 2012 | 21:00 | Finals |
Result
Round 1
Qual. rule: first 3 of each heat plus the 2 fastest times qualified.File:TV-icon-2.svg|thumb|110px|
Heat 1
Heat 2
Final
Results of the Final:| Rank | Lane | Nation | Competitors | Time | Notes |
| 6 | Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, Yohan Blake, Usain Bolt | 36.84 | , | ||
| 9 | Keston Bledman, Marc Burns, Emmanuel Callender, Richard Thompson | 38.12 | |||
| 3 | 38.16 | ||||
| 4 | 4 | Ryota Yamagata, Masashi Eriguchi, Shinji Takahira, Shota Iizuka | 38.35 | ||
| 5 | 8 | Brian Mariano, Churandy Martina, Giovanni Codrington, Patrick van Luijk | 38.39 | ||
| 6 | 2 | Anthony Alozie, Isaac Ntiamoah, Andrew McCabe, Joshua Ross | 38.43 | ||
| 5 | Gavin Smellie, Oluseyi Smith, Jared Connaughton, Justyn Warner | ||||
| 7 | Trell Kimmons, Justin Gatlin, Tyson Gay, Ryan Bailey | Originally handed silver medal, in 2015 disqualified for doping |