London 2012 gold medallist Greg Rutherford called it “heartbreaking” for a team that bagged bronze in Paris just a year ago.
He feared Amo-Dadzie felt the pressure and became “overwhelmed” in the moment, despite clocking a personal best 9.87 seconds in the 100m three weeks before the championships.
“The changeovers were beautiful from one to two and two to three,” Rutherford said. “He’s just gone too soon.
“We have got to September, late in the season, and it is like everyone has forgotten how to pass the baton,” he added.
There was similar frustration in the women’s 4x400m – a team accustomed to success off the back of winning silver or bronze at nine of the past 10 world championships.
The quartet of Poppy Malik, Yemi Mary John, Nicole Yeargin and Victoria Ohuruogu finished last in their heat, which was deemed “not good enough” by Rutherford.
“Yes, it’s tough and conditions are hard, but when there’s that much focus on an event you can’t come last in your heat at a world championships.
World indoor champion Amber Anning, who won bronze as part of the 4x400m squad at the Olympics, was left out of the heat. And Laviai Nielsen, the fourth member of that medal-winning squad, was not selected for Tokyo.
“The four girls that went out there, they should be able to navigate a qualification. From my point of view, it’s genuinely not good enough.”
“We would expect them to qualify,” Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill added. “We’ve seen the success of the team in previous years. Where did it go wrong for that Great British team?”
Dina Asher-Smith, speaking to BBC Sport after Great Britain missed out on the podium in the women’s 4x100m relay, said: “We gave it our all. Obviously, we wanted gold, that’s all we aim for.
“We will go back and look back and analyse. It’s not necessarily a disappointment. It’s just about learning, going forward and increasing it next time.
“We always want to be on top of the podium and I’m speaking for every relay team out there. We have high expectations, so what were going to do especially pushing forward to LA is work hard stay disciplined and come out and smash it.”
Great Britain and Northern Ireland finished on five medals overall – three silvers and two bronzes – and 21st in the medal table. It is their worst showing at a World Championships since Paris 2003.
At the last World Championships, in Budapest in 2023, the British team won 10 medals – their joint highest haul.
