USATF Get Rid of Women’s Relay Coach Mechelle Freeman After Three Straight 4 x 100 Gold Medals Due to…

USATF Get Rid of Women’s Relay Coach Mechelle Freeman After Three Straight 4 x 100 Gold Medals Due to…

 

 

June 28, 2025 – Indianapolis, IN – In a stunning move, USA Track & Field (USATF) opted not to renew the contract of Mechelle Lewis Freeman, the highly successful Head Coach of the U.S. women’s 4×100m relay team.

This decision arrives just months after Freeman orchestrated an unprecedented hat-trick of victories: gold medals at the Tokyo Olympics (2020), the 2022 World Championships, and the 2023 World Championships in Budapest—where the U.S. set a championship record of 41.03 seconds .

Freeman, a former 2007 World Champion sprinter and 2008 Olympian, announced her departure on February 26, 2025, via Instagram, expressing gratitude and optimism:

> “My time as the USATF Head Women’s Relays Coach has come to an end… Thank you, Lord, for choosing me to show the world how to WIN against it all… To the athletes, keep making history and much love.”

The track community was taken aback. A Change.org petition titled “Reinstate Coach Mechelle Freeman” highlighted her role in guiding Team USA to gold in 2020, 2022, and 2023, arguing that USATF’s decision lacked transparency and threatened the program’s momentum .

Tensions reportedly simmered behind the scenes. On June 4, Freeman issued a pointed statement on X (formerly Twitter), blasting the organization:

> “Here we are: The DISRESPECT I had to deal with behind closed doors is finally being spoken out loud… Imagine only winning GOLD MEDALS BACK to BACK to BACK … and having people claim you ‘aren’t a coach.’”

Her comments reignited debate following the U.S. relay team’s underwhelming performance at the 2025 World Athletics Relays in Guangzhou, where they managed just one gold and floundered with multiple baton mishaps .

Sports analyst Rae Edwards supported Freeman, stating that her firing appeared to be an internal overreaction:

> “Team USA y’all just gave her fire for her speech… That world relays showcase was definitely horrid and unacceptable by the standards of what Team USA used to be. She gets the last laugh now for sure.”

Financial challenges within USATF may have also contributed. A Wall Street Journal investigation revealed a $12 million deficit in 2022–2023, leading to layoffs, event cancellations, and a downsizing of support for relay preparation—including scrapped overseas tune-up events . One internal after‑action report cited by the WSJ noted that canceled London relay meets may have hampered preparation—though USATF leadership denied this was the reason for Freeman’s exit .

Freeman’s departure creates a critical vacancy just three months before the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo (September 13–21). USATF has named veteran coach Darryl Woodson as interim head of all international relay squads . Woodson brings extensive experience, but questions remain about whether he can sustain the relay program’s recent dominance under such fraught conditions.

Supporters argue that removing a coach with a proven record—and reportedly undermining her role—signals troubling internal politics, particularly for women and minority coaches. The Change.org petition emphasizes that Freeman is the only Black woman to hold this position and highlights how her removal “threatens stability and success as we approach the 2025 World Championships” .

As the relay teams prepare for Tokyo, all eyes will be on USATF’s new leadership structure. Will the organization rally around continuity and respect, or will internal strife threaten their sprinting supremacy?