Andre De Grasse and men's 4x100m relay team set sights on Olympic title
CBC
Going into his third Olympic Games, Brendon Rodney has "one single goal" on his mind.
Rodney, 32, has an Olympic silver medal from Tokyo in 2021 and a bronze from Rio in 2016. There's only one colour missing from the collection: gold.
"We want to get the job done," Rodney told CBC Sports last month before heading to Paris.
Now, the team that's been together for so long that they know each other's movements by instinct, will have what may be one last shot at Olympic gold. Aaron Brown and Jerome Blake join Rodney and De Grasse on the relay team, and should be the four running in a final, if everyone is healthy.
Two months ago, those four posted a season-best 37.89 seconds at the World Athletics Relays. Only the Americans, led by star sprinter Noah Lyles, were better that day in Nassau, Bahamas.
But the team sees better things on the horizon.
WATCH | De Grasse and Canada's 4x100 relay men have more to give at Paris 2024:
"We're not done," Brown told CBC Sports' Devin Heroux after that race.
After being named one of Canada's two flagbearers at the opening ceremony, 29-year-old De Grasse — the owner of six Olympic medals — told CBC Sports' Scott Russell that the honour has given him more motivation.
"It kind of makes me feel like I'm even more ready to get the job done."
Three of the four members of the relay team have now been together for three Olympic Games. Rodney and Brown go as far back as high school, while Rodney and De Grasse have spent a decade as teammates and roommates on the national team.
They're just as close off the track as they are on it. When Brown got married, the rest of the team was there to support him. The only time they're not together is when they're competing in individual events, said Rodney, who described the group's bond as a brotherhood.
Reaching the top of the podium in Paris won't come easy with teams like the United States and Jamaica in the way.
"It's going to take a national record, some of the best running ever in the history of the sport, to win," Rodney said.
Graham Thomas sees a calm confidence and a deep hunger in his team.
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