“It’s a new chapter for me, winning the gold,” grinned Oblique Seville after his thunderous sprint in the men’s 100m final at the Tokyo World Championships. The 24-year-old had just become the first Jamaican since Usain Bolt to win the 100m title at the tournament, and his elation was justified. But it seems like the 100m triumph has only made Seville hungrier for more silverware at the Japanese capital.

While most of Oblique’s compadres, like Noah Lyles and Letsile Tebogo, are occupied with preparations for the 200m event, the Jamaican has his eyes fixed on the 4x100m relays. Given that he will be joining Kishane Thompson, who won silver in the men’s 100m final, Seville believes that the Americans are in for another round of battering soon. In a YouTube upload by the Jamaica Gleaner from September 15, the reigning world champ could be heard sending out an ominous message to Team USA.

On being asked how he feels about Jamaica winning the upcoming relays, an event the country hasn’t won at the World Championships since 2015, Seville stated, “I think we have the chance to win the gold because we have been in a drought for quite some time and I think this year is the year for us to actually show back our dominance in the sports.”

But let’s face it: Jamaica hasn’t won gold in the event at the WC for almost a decade for a reason. The team that bagged the men’s 4×100 relay title in Beijing in 2015 had the legendary Usain Bolt in the lineup. While it is true that this year’s team will also have plenty of Olympic and World Championships medalists like Seville and Thompson, they haven’t come close to matching Bolt’s time yet. That gold-winning team also had Asafa Powell, an Olympic and 2x World Championships gold medalist, underscoring its sprinting depth.

On the other hand, Team USA will enter the event with big guns of its own. Noah Lyles, who anchored the Americans to gold two years ago in Budapest, Kenny Bednarek, Courtney Lindsey, and Christian Coleman will all be available to represent the Stars and Stripes in Tokyo for the relays. All of these stars have posted 9.90 this year, and Seville & Co. will have their work cut out for them in the finals, without a doubt.

The USA won gold at the last World Championships, while the 4x winners, Jamaica, only managed bronze in Budapest in 2023, their only highlight in recent years. This goes on to show how the Americans have dominated the event, making the most of their arch-rivals’ struggles. With that in mind, it’s understandable why Seville thinks this could be the year when he and his national teammates finally end the dry run. Defeating the likes of Lyles and Bednarek to make a statement? What could be better? But it’s easier said than done.

Oblique Seville and his teammates won’t get a hall pass

The biggest hope for Jamaica to win the gold would be the rivalry that has been brewing between Lyles and Bednarek. At the USATF Championships last month, following Noah’s win in the 200m final, Kung Fu Kenny was seen shoving the former from the back, as the reigning Olympic champ returned in kind with a stern stare. However, ahead of the World Championships, Bednarek noted that they had worked things out between themselves and were looking ahead to dishing out their best in Tokyo.

Moreover, Kenny also noted before the tournament began that his goal was to win gold in all three events (100m, 200m, and 4×100 relay) at the World Championships. With the 26-year-old failing to even make the podium in the shorter distance, it should be assumed that Bednarek will focus all his energies on the other two events.

Bednarek has already claimed that he will be giving his best in the men’s 200m, and the same should go for the relay race as well. On the other hand, considering how Team USA crashed out of the World Relays earlier this year after a sordid baton affair, it’s not like Lyles & Co. will be lining up for the event without any pressure on themselves. But can Seville, Thompson, and the rest of the Jamaicans gain an advantage by taking advantage of the mental pressure that will follow the Americans to the relay? What do you think?