Texas Tech track & field 400-meter standouts Gil Roberts and Michael Mathieu stood on the medal stand with gold and bronze around their necks in the final track & field event of the Olympics, the 4×400-meter relay, on Saturday night at Olympic Stadium.
Roberts ran third on the mile relay for the United States, as the Americans won gold behind a time of 2:57.30. Roberts received the baton in the lead and handed it to the anchor leg with a larger advantage, ensuring Roberts of his first Olympic medal to cap off a memorable Summer Games for the Texas Tech record holder.
Mathieu, a three-time Olympian, earned his third consecutive medal, earning bronze after running the second leg for the Bahamas, turning in a time of 2:58.49. It completes the medal trifecta for Mathieu, who won silver in 2008 and gold in 2012 as a member of the relay.
Their medals make eight total won by Red Raider track & field athletes and nine overall among all sports at Texas Tech.
Roberts also ran in the open 400 meters at this year’s Olympics, finishing ninth in the semifinal after posting a season-best 44.65 seconds. High jumper Bradley Adkins placed 21st in the qualifying round of the event after clearing an outdoor-best 2.26m/7-5. The duo became the ninth and 10thRed Raiders to compete at the Olympics, bringing the total to 15 track & field performances over the last four Games.
