England women's 4x100m relay team upgraded to gold
England's 4x100m relay team were presented their rightful Commonwealth gold medals at the London Diamond League over the weekend.
In front of 60,000 athletics fans, Daryll Neita (Cambridge Harriers, Marco Airale), Imani-Lara Lansiquot (Sutton & District, Ryan Freckleton), Bianca Williams (Thames Valley, Linford Christie) and Ashleigh Nelson (City of Stoke, Leon Baptiste) were honoured for their achievements alongside Asha Philip (Newham & Essex Beagles) who was not at the competition. The upgrade comes as a result of a doping violation from Nigerian sprinter, Nzubechi Grace Nwokocha, in July 2023. The upgrade to Commonwealth champions means that Asha Philip and Bianca Williams have now won back-to-back medals in the women's 4x100m relay.
The medal ceremony was conducted by Olympic champion, two-time Commonwealth heptathlon champion, and President of Commonwealth Games England, Dame Denise Lewis.
Speaking on the presentation, Lansiquot said:
"I think it's really important to take stock of moments like this. It's not often that you get a gold medal at home, in a home crowd, in a home stadium so I'm really happy. As athletes, we have so much integrity and we put so much hard work into everything that we do. And so it is really special that we get rewarded for that properly.
"Obviously we would have loved to have had that in 2022, but it's okay. We've got that moment now."
England Athletics' Team Manager, Scott Grace, said:
"We are delighted the women have been recognised for their achievements when representing England two years ago. Ensuring that our sport remains clean, and it is a fair playing field for all athletes is of the upmost importance.
"The London Diamond League acted as the perfect occasion to celebrate and give them the deserved recognition in front of British athletics fans. As we head into the Olympic and Paralympic Games, we wish Imani, Bianca and Daryll all the best in their final preparations and we can't wait to support them every step of the way."
Image: Team England