# Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Women's 4 × 100 metres relay

The women's 4 × 100 metres relay competition at the 2012 Olympic Games in London took place on 9–10 August at the Olympic Stadium. The victorious United States team broke the world record by over half a second. The previous record had been set 27 years previously by East Germany. The Jamaican team, 6 metres back, missed the previous world record by 0.04, but set a new national record. Another 7 metres back, Ukraine took the bronze, also setting a new national record.

## Records

Prior to the competition, the existing World and Olympic records were as follows.
| World record | East Germany (Silke Gladisch, Sabine Rieger, Ingrid Auerswald, Marlies Göhr) | 41.37 | Canberra, Australia | 6 October 1985 |
| Olympic record | East Germany (Romy Müller, Bärbel Wöckel, Ingrid Auerswald, Marlies Göhr) | 41.60 | Moscow, Soviet Union | 1 August 1980 |
| 2012 World leading | United States (Tianna Madison, Allyson Felix, Bianca Knight, Carmelita Jeter) | 42.19 | Philadelphia, United States | 28 April 2012 |
The following records were established during the competition:
| Date | Event | Name | Nationality | Time | Record |
| 10 August 2012 | Final | Tianna Madison, Allyson Felix, Bianca Knight, Carmelita Jeter | United States | 40.82 | WR |
| 10 August 2012 | Final | Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Sherone Simpson, Veronica Campbell-Brown, Kerron Stewart | Jamaica | 41.41 | NR |
| 10 August 2012 | Final | Olesya Povh, Hrystyna Stuy, Mariya Ryemyen, Elyzaveta Bryzgina | Ukraine | 42.04 | NR |
| 9 August 2012 | Round 1 | Michelle-Lee Ahye, Kelly-Ann Baptiste, Kai Selvon, Semoy Hackett | Trinidad and Tobago | 42.31 | NR |
| 9 August 2012 | Round 1 | Kadene Vassell, Dafne Schippers, Eva Lubbers, Jamile Samuel | Netherlands | 42.45 | NR |
| 9 August 2012 | Round 1 | Ana Claudia Silva, Franciela Krasucki, Evelyn dos Santos, Rosângela Santos | Brazil | 42.55 | AR |

## Results
### Round 1

Qual. rule: first 3 of each heat (Q) plus the 2 fastest times (q) qualified.

#### Heat 1

| Rank | Lane | Nation | Competitors | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 2 | United States | Tianna Madison, Jeneba Tarmoh, Bianca Knight, Lauryn Williams | 41.64 | Q, SB |
| 2 | 4 | Trinidad and Tobago | Michelle-Lee Ahye, Kelly-Ann Baptiste, Kai Selvon, Semoy Hackett | 42.31 | Q, NR |
| 3 | 8 | Netherlands | Kadene Vassell, Dafne Schippers, Eva Lubbers, Jamile Samuel | 42.45 | Q, NR |
| 4 | 7 | Brazil | Ana Claudia Silva, Franciela Krasucki, Evelyn dos Santos, Rosângela Santos | 42.55 | q, AR |
| 5 | 3 | Nigeria | Christy Udoh, Gloria Asumnu, Oludamola Osayomi, Blessing Okagbare | 42.74 | q, SB |
| 6 | 9 | Bahamas | Sheniqua Ferguson, Chandra Sturrup, Christine Amertil, Anthonique Strachan | 43.07 | SB |
| 7 | 6 | Switzerland | Michelle Cueni, Mujinga Kambundji, Ellen Sprunger, Léa Sprunger | 43.54 | PB |
| 8 | 5 | Japan | Anna Doi, Kana Ichikawa, Chisato Fukushima, Yumeka Sano | 44.25 | |

#### Heat 2

| Rank | Lane | Nation | Competitors | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 4 | Ukraine | Olesya Povh, Hrystyna Stuy, Mariya Ryemyen, Elyzaveta Bryzgina | 42.36 | Q, SB |
| 2 | 6 | Jamaica | Samantha Henry-Robinson, Sherone Simpson, Schillonie Calvert, Kerron Stewart | 42.37 | Q, SB |
| 3 | 9 | Germany | Leena Günther, Anne Cibis, Tatjana Pinto, Verena Sailer | 42.69 | Q |
| 4 | 2 | Poland | Marika Popowicz, Daria Korczynska, Marta Jeschke, Ewelina Ptak | 43.07 | |
| 5 | 5 | Colombia | Yomara Hinestroza, Norma González, Darlenis Obregón, Eliecith Palacios | 43.21 | SB |
| 6 | 7 | Russia | Olga Belkina, Natalia Rusakova, Elizabeta Savlinis, Aleksandra Fedoriva | 43.24 | SB |
| 7 | 3 | Belarus | Alina Talay, Katsiaryna Hanchar, Elena Danilyuk-Nevmerzhytskaya, Yuliya Balykina | 43.90 | |
| — | 8 | France | Myriam Soumaré, Ayodelé Ikuesan, Lina Jacques-Sébastien, Johanna Danois | DQ | R 163.3a |
* France originally finished in seventh place with a time of 43.77, but were disqualified due to a lane infringement.

### Final

The American team had an often repeated history of relay failures, so most of the pre-race discussion focused on whether it could successfully get the baton around the track. At the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, both the men's and women's 4 × 100 metres teams had dropped the baton, leading one reporter to call it the "nadir in US relay history".
On the first leg of the final, Tianna Madison was able to hold her own against the double 100-metre gold medalist Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. Allyson Felix put the USA into the lead, extended by Bianca Knight around the turn. At the final handoff to individual 100-metre silver medalist Carmelita Jeter, the team enjoyed a 3-metre lead. Secure in the handoffs, Jeter sped to the finish, noticing the time and pointing at the clock before the finish line.
| Rank | Lane | Nation | Competitors | Time | Notes |
| | 7 | United States | Tianna Madison, Allyson Felix, Bianca Knight, Carmelita Jeter | 40.82 | WR |
| | 6 | Jamaica | Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Sherone Simpson, Veronica Campbell-Brown, Kerron Stewart | 41.41 | NR |
| | 5 | Ukraine | Olesya Povh, Hrystyna Stuy, Mariya Ryemyen, Elyzaveta Bryzgina | 42.04 | NR |
| 4 | 2 | Nigeria | Oludamola Osayomi, Gloria Asumnu, Endurance Abinuwa, Blessing Okagbare | 42.64 | SB |
| 5 | 8 | Germany | Leena Günther, Anne Cibis, Tatjana Pinto, Verena Sailer | 42.67 | |
| 6 | 9 | Netherlands | Kadene Vassell, Dafne Schippers, Eva Lubbers, Jamile Samuel | 42.70 | |
| 7 | 3 | Brazil | Ana Claudia Silva, Franciela Krasucki, Evelyn dos Santos, Rosângela Santos | 42.91 | |
| — | 4 | Trinidad and Tobago | Michelle-Lee Ahye, Kelly-Ann Baptiste, Kai Selvon, Semoy Hackett | — | DNF |
* Trinidad and Tobago failed to finish as Michelle-Lee Ahye could not pass the baton to Kelly-Ann Baptiste in time.