The penultimate day at the World Athletics Championships was another banner one for representatives from the Buckeye state.
On Saturday at Hayward Field in Eugene, Abby Steiner and Trevor Bassitt took on relay duties while Emily Infeld lined up in the 5000 meter finals.
Following her 5th place finish in the 200, Steiner transitioned over to team relay competition and helped the American squad earn gold in a world leading time of 41.14, upsetting the favored Jamaicans who placed second with a 41.18 mark.
Assigned to leg 2, Steiner took the baton from Melissa Jefferson and put in yeoman's work for the group, splitting an incredible 9.86. Steiner and Jefferson were joined atop the podium by teammates Jenna Prandini and Twanisha Terry.
Team USA advanced to the finals by virtue of their 41.56 first place effort on Friday in Heat 2 of the preliminary round. Steiner did not contest the prelims. Continuing to display her customary team-first approach, Steiner has indicated she'd be game to race Sunday evening's 4x400m finals, however, at this time, the official starters have still not been unveiled.
In the 4x400 meter heats, the American team, consisting of Elija Godwin, Vernon Norwood, Bryce Deadmon and Trevor Bassitt, decisively won the second race in 2:58.96 and landed the top spot in the merged standings heading into the final round.
Bassitt, the 400H bronze medalist, anchored Team USA and split 45.29. Similar to Steiner, he's hoping for inclusion on Sunday's finals roster, but commented that if he's left on the sidelines the team can count on him as their biggest supporter.
The lone Ohioan to compete individually on Saturday was 2008 Beaumont School graduate Emily Infeld. Infeld shared with reporters, post-race, that she lost contact with the group early and just couldn't rebound and put together the performance she was planning.
While disappointed to finish 14th overall in 15:29.03, Infeld took consolation in the fact that she earned a spot in the finals not long after battling through a case of COVID-19 and raced hard to the end even though the showing was not representative of her current fitness level.
Next up for the 2016 Olympian could be some appearances on the road racing circuit.
Watch Steiner's interview above and post-race debriefs from Bassitt and Infeld below.
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