Daryll Neita promised the women’s 4x100m relay team will bounce back from Tokyo heartache after missing out on a World Championship medal.
The former Loughborough College student ran the final leg but was unable to claw back the deficit to podium placers USA, Jamaica and Germany.
She crossed the line in fourth to complete a spirited run by the British team that also included Dina Asher-Smith, 200m silver medallist Amy Hunt and Desiree Henry.
It completes a frustrating week for Neita, who missed out on the final in the individual 100m and 200m.
“Every time I am running with these ladies is such an honour and I am always going to give it 110 per cent,” Neita said.
“I was definitely fighting to get us on the podium and I missed out today which is not what we hoped for.
“But we win as a team and lose as a team and ultimately, there is a lot of love in this team. We are going to be absolutely fine.”
Meanwhile, British Athletics bosses vowed to leave no stone unturned after the worst return at a World Championships in 22 years.
Georgia Hunter Bell and Keely Hodgkinson claimed silver and bronze respectively in the women’s 800m on the final day, but GB and NI finish these Worlds in Tokyo without a gold medal for the first time since 2003 in Paris.
It comes off the back of Team GB earning the most athletics medals in 40 years in the French capital last summer.
There were some extenuating circumstances, with Olympic silver medallist Matt Hudson-Smith unable to take his place in the men’s 4x400m final, and Lewis Davey, part of the bronze medal-winning team a year ago, racing despite an adductor tear.
Greg Rutherford was among those to criticise the relay performances, and performance director Paula Dunn admitted the rest of the world has caught up.
She said: “What we're seeing now across the nations is that everybody's investing in relays. Everybody, you know, the Dutch, the Germans. For me it's like the marginal advantage we had has gone. We have now got to really focus in on it.
“Disappointment is sometimes a good thing. Because we have now got an opportunity to put things right.
“We want to be one of the best nations. But sometimes you have those years where it's a rebuild year.”
Novuna is the Title sponsor of the GB & NI Athletics Team. Together, we make the important things happen – on the track, in business and in life. Find out more www.Novuna.co.uk and @_novuna
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