University of Kansas Athletics

DE JANEIRO, Brazil – Former Kansas track & field sprinter Kyle Clemons became a gold-medal winner Saturday when the U.S. won the Olympic title in the 4×400-meter relay event inside Olympic Stadium.

Clemons, who did not run in the final, earned gold by way of his third leg performance in the relay’s semifinal heat Friday. Clemons becomes the ninth KU track & field Olympic Gold medalist and the school’s first male gold-medal winner since Al Oerter won the discus in Mexico City in 1968. The victory also marks the second-consecutive Olympic Games a Jayhawk has stood atop the podium. Diamond Dixon earned a gold medal with the women’s 4×400-meter relay at the London Games four years ago.

On Friday, Clemons turned in an impressive third leg split of 44.96 as he helped the U.S. 4×400-meter relay past the preliminary heats. The American group crossed the finish line with a commanding victory in a time of 2:58.38 to advance to Saturday’s final.

In the final, the Americans were never tested. The group clocked in with a winning time of 2:57.30, nearly a second ahead of the silver-medalist Jamaican team.