Warren Weir wants Jamaica to set new record for 4x200m relay

Kingston (Jamaica), Sep 20 (IANS/CMC) Jamaican sprinter Warren Weir wants to be part of a national team to set a new record for the rare 4×200 metre relay event.

The race has been included in the programme for the inaugural IAAF World Relay meet to be held in the Bahamas next year, reports CMC.

The world record for the 4x200m stands at one minute 18.68 seconds and was set by the Santa Monica Track Club (Carl Lewis, Mike Marsh, Leroy Burrell and Floyd Heard) in April 1994.

“Seeing that there is a meet in the Caribbean, I would want to go, even if the other athletes are not thinking of going. I would like to put a team together and go,” said Weir, who also took silver in the 200m at the World Championships in Moscow with a personal best equalling run of 19.79 seconds.

“I want to have my name on a world-record plaque somewhere that will stand for a very long time and I don’t think the big man (Bolt) will turn down a world record, so we should look forward to that.”

He tasted relay success on the international stage following his run in the heats for Jamaica’s 4x100m team, which went on to take gold at last month’s World Championships.

Weir is hoping that his Racers Club teammates, including 200m world recorder holder Usain Bolt (19.19) and the second-fastest man in history over the half-lap event, Yohan Blake (19.26), will be open to the idea of joining forces to run the rarely contested relay.

“I want to go,” Weir said.

“From a very long time, I have said that there should be a meet somewhere on the European circuit that allows us to run the 4x200m.”

Apart from the 4×200 metre event, the IAAF World Relay in the Bahamas next May will also include the 4x100m, 4x400m, 4x800m and 4x1500m relays.

The athletes will be competing for $1.4 million in prize money.