American sprinter Kendall Ellis said she was “blindsided” when she was pulled from the 4×400-metre relay at the Paris Olympics on Saturday night.
Ellis was the reigning U.S. 400-meter champion, but she was not part of the team that steamrolled its opponents on the track. Instead, Shamier Little, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Gabby Thomas and Alexis Holmes dominated on their way to the gold medal.
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American Kendall Ellis prepares to compete in the women's 400 metres semi-final of the athletics event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, on August 7, 2024. (JEWEL SAMAD/AFP via Getty Images)
Ellis told ESPN he had four minutes to spare before he was told he could not compete in the medal race.
“I feel very proud of the team that showed up. I think they ran amazing,” she said. “I also feel disappointed, cheated and embarrassed. I feel like I've been blindsided because I was told one thing this morning and for hours I thought I was going to be in the final. It seems like everyone knows but me.”
Ellis said she woke up to a text from Mechelle Freeman, who told her she would not be competing in the 4×400-meter relay. Ellis said she wanted to make her point in person, and when she did, Freeman told her to prepare as if she were going to compete in the relay after all.
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USA's Kendall Ellis competes in the women's 400 metres repechage round of the athletics event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the 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 American coach approached him and said he was sorry he couldn't compete. Ellis told his personal trainer, Quincy Watts, what he heard. Watts then spoke to Freeman about the decision and Ellis heard he wasn't going to run the race.
“That was four minutes before the race,” Ellis told ESPN.
“We had a good conversation [this morning]”It was a good meeting. I'm an amazing relay runner. It was disappointing not to be in the relay, but I'm angry about the way it was done. I don't feel supported or valued as a team member or as a 400m runner, and I don't feel respected.”
Ellis said she's not sure what she'll do now that the Olympics are over.
Kendall Ellis of Team USA looks on during the Women's 400m Repechage Round on day eleven of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Stade de France on August 6, 2024 in Paris, France. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
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USATF did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Elllis won gold in the 4×400-metre relay and a bronze medal in the mixed 4×400-metre relay in Tokyo in 2021.
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