Their bronze was sufficient for the new UK Athletics hierarchy to change tack and restore women’s 4x100m funding for the following year. It also sparked a notable upturn in fortunes.
Despite the departure of Reider – currently serving a one-year probation after misconduct allegations – from British Athletics in 2014, the team’s rise continued unchecked.
Britain’s female sprint relay quartets won Olympic bronze behind the mighty Americans and Jamaicans in 2016 and 2020, while they have also won two silvers from the past four World Championships, narrowly missing out on the podium on the other two occasions.
While much of the success is a result of hard work at relay camps and a renewed focus on the programme, athletes are quick to stress the importance of collective buy-in, including the impact of UK Athletics lead performance psychologist Jennifer Savage, who started working with the relay programme in 2014.
“Maybe beforehand people weren’t getting on, but the current group of girls has a common goal and goes after it,” said Nelson.
“It doesn’t matter what you want to do in your individual event – despite everybody’s individual aspirations, we also realise the benefit of coming together as a team.”
Bianca Williams, an unused reserve in that Moscow 2013 relay squad, said: “There didn’t used to be much belief in relays. After that Moscow medal people realised what we could do.
“The chemistry we all have is fantastic and each year it keeps improving. We have relay bonding camps where we really understand each other and what we want from the year.”
Through Asher-Smith, the collective success has been replicated in the individual sprints, with Britain’s fastest-ever woman collecting one 100m and two 200m world medals. But even beyond her, the strength in depth is greater than ever, with Daryll Neita leading a clutch of British contenders in her wake.
Four of the top five British women’s 100m times and four of the top six 200m times have been recorded since 2016.
Beyond reaping the benefits of technological advancements on and off the track, Lewis – who is now an athletics coach – believes there has been a fundamental mindset shift since the sustained relay success.
“Once you have success in the collective it gives you confidence,” she said. “It’s given everyone a platform to understand how to perform under pressure around the best people in the world.
“Then it gives you more confidence to say: ‘I don’t just want to go for the relay, I want to go for the individual as well.'”
Nelson, who has missed the 2023 season through injury, points to the importance of Asher-Smith’s joy on the global stage and the pack mentality in chasing her heels.
“In the American collegiate system, everybody is fast and they are coming up against fast people every week,” she said. “Within the UK, maybe there was a lack of belief or people thought there was a ceiling because no-one from Britain had done it.
“It just took one or two people to break through for everyone to have that belief. We all want to beat each other so maybe it’s having someone that bit closer to home that you can compete with.”