Athletics - Team Germany

General
Germany took part in the first 4x100m relay at the 1912 Games, where they were disqualified in the final. They returned to the Olympic stage 16 years later, and won three consecutive medals at the Games from 1928 to 1936, which remain the last time Germany has stood on the Olympic podium in the event. In the post-war period, the Unified Team of Germany won two medals including gold in 1960, and both the German Democratic Republic and the Federal Republic of Germany claimed a medal each at the Games.

Since reunification, the German team has struggled to even make the final, progressing from their heat just once in five Olympic appearances since 1996. Their best result is a fourth-placed finish at the 2008 Games, where they originally finished fifth before being promoted to fourth following the 2017 disqualification of the Jamaican team that originally won gold in Beijing. Germany almost made the final at the 2016 Games in Rio, finishing ranked ninth in the heats and just .07s behind Brazil.

On the world stage, Germany are yet to win a world championship medal, and did not qualify for the final at the 2017 or 2019 editions of the tournament. They secured their ticket to Tokyo by qualifying for the final at the 2021 World Relays, but ultimately failed to finish the final.