American sprinter Kendall Ellis said she was “blindsided” when she was removed from the 4×400-meter relay at the Paris Olympics on Saturday night.
Ellis was the reigning U.S. 400-meter champion. But she was not a part of the team that blew out its opponents on the track. Instead, Shamier Little, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Gabby Thomas and Alexis Holmes dominated on their road to a gold medal.
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US’ Kendall Ellis prepares to compete in the women’s 400m semi-final of the athletics event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at Stade de France in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, on August 7, 2024. (JEWEL SAMAD/AFP via Getty Images)
Ellis told ESPN she had four minutes to spare before she was told she was a no go for the medal race.
“I feel very proud of the team that was put out there. I think they ran incredible,” she said. “I also feel disappointed and lied to and embarrassed. I feel like I was blindsided because I was told one thing this morning and, for hours, thought I was running in the final. It seems everyone know besides me.”
Ellis said she woke up to a text message from Mechelle Freeman, saying that she wouldn’t be in the 4×400-meter relay. Ellis said she wanted to make her point in person and when she did, she said Freeman told her to prepare as if she will be competing in the relay after all.
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US’ Kendall Ellis competes in the women’s 400m repechage round of the athletics event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at Stade de France in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, on August 6, 2024. (JEWEL SAMAD/AFP via Getty Images)
But before the race, Ellis said another U.S. coach came up to her and said she was sorry that she wasn’t competing. Ellis told her personal coach Quincy Watts about what she heard. Watts then talked to Freeman about the decision and Ellis overheard that she wasn’t going to be in the race.
“That was four minutes before the race,” Ellis told ESPN.
“We had a good conversation [this morning], a good meeting. I’m an incredible relay runner. It was disappointing to not be on the relay, but I’m angry about the way it was done. I don’t feel supported or valued as a member of the team or as a 400-meter runner, and I don’t feel respected.”
Ellis said she’s unsure what she’ll do now that that Olympics are over with.
Kendall Ellis of Team United States looks on during the Women’s 400m Repechage Round on day eleven of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Stade de France on August 06, 2024 in Paris, France. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
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USATF didn’t immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Elllis won gold in the 4×400-meter relay and a bronze medal in the mixed 4×400-meter relay in Tokyo in 2021.
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