The competition exists out of two rounds, with each team conducting a lap of 400 metres in each round. Each athlete in a team takes part in a quarter of the race, with the fastest three teams in the heats advancing to the final, as well as the fastest non-qualifiers. The team with the fastest time in the final is the winner of the event.
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Sixteen teams qualified for the event with the reigning world champion and world record holder United States as the top favorite for the title, but behind the American representation, the race for the medals became more open.