Another day, another relay disaster! An indoor track and field meet for class 3 athletes at Liberty University recorded a disastrous moment on camera. Something that no one ever expected. It posed a threat to a teen athlete’s safety. So, is running on the track no longer safe? Maybe. Also, it raised serious questions about the authorities’ lack of response. Naturally, both these aspects have left the sprinter’s family infuriated! And they are being as blunt as it gets! But what happened that stirred this storm?

Well, on Tuesday, Brookville racer Kaelen Tucker ran the second leg in the 4x200m relay state final at Liberty University when she was subjected to a vicious in-race attack! While she was overtaking a runner from the I.C. Norcom High School from the inside lane, an abrupt blow came down at the back of her head. It was the baton that was used to hit her by the runner behind! In seconds, it knocked the 16-year-old to the ground. Unconscious. Naturally, she and her family were dumbfounded. But what’s worse? They got no explanation, no apology!

In a March 7 interview with WSET ABC 13, Kaelen Tucker and her mother, Tamarrow Tucker, sat down with the media. That’s when they presented insights into how severe the impact was. Tamarrow clarified, “We took Kaelen to the doctor today, she does have a slight concussion. And still with the headaches. They did say she would have to be cleared 24 hours without a headache before they could clear her away from concussion. So no track right now.”

But it’s not the “no track” part that’s the scariest. It’s the possibility of a threatening skull fracture. Yes, Tamarrow also mentioned, “Um, also, they examined her where she was struck. It is swollen and there is a possible fracture, skull fracture. Not sure yet, we’ll have to wait till the swelling goes down and go back and do some Imaging just to see exactly what that’s going to be.” Well, the injury surely sounds quite intense.

But what makes it worse is the fact that Kaelen Tucker and her parents didn’t get any apology from the sprinter or the school she represented. Tamarrow sounded furious! She did send an email to the VHSL, explaining the track and field incident. They even responded, saying that they were investigating the matter.

But, Tamarrow was still unsure, “I think my whole thing was no apology, like no coaches, no athlete, no anything. Even if it was an accident, which I don’t believe it was an accident, but nothing. And it’s been more than 24 hours now. So I guess that was the major thing. My child was hurt, and nobody came to check on her.”

Of course, the mother was hurt by this appalling incident that occurred on the track. But the whole question with these rising relay accidents is: why is this happening? After all, track and field isn’t a ‘Contact Sport.’ So, is all this permissible? Well, another incident from not even a week ago will make you wonder what’s happening in the relay scene.

Track and field witnessed another relay debacle just a week ago

At the 2025 Big 12 Championships that happened this weekend, two relay runners in the 4x400m men’s relay finals faced a clash. Malik Franklin from Arizona State and Desean Boyce from Texas Tech clashed in the third leg of the relay. While Boyce tried to overtake from the inside lane, Franklin attempted to cut him out of the turn when the two bumped into each other.

Franklin then came from behind and clipped Boyce’s leg. And even meters before the finish line, the two bumped their shoulders against each other while overtaking again. No wonder the update post read, “3rd leg of the Big 12 4x400m final got chippy between Texas Tech and Arizona State.”

Well, one thing is sure. The instance with Kaelen Tucker is a lot more serious than what happened in the Big 12 finals. But what do you think about these rising relay clashes? Share your thoughts with us below!