What's up with the U.S. men's track team?

With two days to go at the Tokyo Olympics, no country is close to the United States' total medal haul of 98. Only China (36) has won more gold than the U.S. (31).

That's situation normal for any Olympics, right?

What's decidedly situation abnormal, however, is that the once vaunted U.S. men's track team hasn't won a single race. If that stands, it would be a first since the modern Olympic era began in 1896.

The American men's last chance at gold comes in the 4x400m relay race. By winning its qualifying heat Friday, the U.S. foursome of Trevor Stewart, Randolph Ross, Bryce Deadmon and Vernon Norwood advanced to Saturday's final with the squad's season-best time of two minutes, 57.77 seconds.

But will they muck it up there, as their American 4x100m relay teammates Ronnie Baker and Fred Kerley did earlier this week? The latter's botched exchange meant the U.S. failed even to advance out of the qualifying heats.

The pressure on U.S. 4x400m runners will be immense in Saturday's final. Criticism back home of the team's overall performance has been blowing up all week. And rightly so.

Legendary American sprinter Carl Lewis tweeted that the latest 4x100 Olympic debacle “was a total embarrassment, and completely unacceptable.”

What in hell has happened? The U.S. track team landed in Tokyo with the usual bevy of male medal favourites. But their big men, in big Olympic moments, have been coming up small. Time and again.

This, after sprinter Noah Lyles predicted before the Games: “Shoot, I want (us to win) all the sprints. Plain and simple. 100. 200. 400. 400 hurdles. 110 hurdles. 800 ... Shoot, I want it all. ”

Saying it is one thing. Doing it is another.