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Not only did the United States women win gold in Friday's 4x100 relay final, they set a new world record while doing it.It was a record that stood for 27 years, which amounts to a few lifetimes in modern track. Tianna Madison, Allyson Felix, Bianca Knight and Carmelita Jeter had no trouble passing off the baton and keeping the competition at bay. They ran their 400 aggregate meters in 40.82 seconds. That's 10.2 seconds per runner -- an incredible rate for a female quartet on the track. The new mark beats the record set by East Germany in 1985 by .55 seconds, essentially a torching by the Americans. That record, though long acknowledged, has also long been viewed with skepticism by those within track and field as having been accomplished with the aid of performance-enhancing Team USA Set World Record in Women's 4x100m Relay drugs. It was never proven to be illegitimate, however.Jeter, who ran the anchor Friday, finished the race less than 24 hours Team USA Set World Record in Women's 4x100m Relay after taking questions from reporters about her ties to a man barred from track and field for his affiliation with banned substances. A big American celebration was also roped into an awkward time, for sure. To be clear, Jeter has never failed a drug test.The Americans are now far and away considered the best sprinters Team USA Set World Record in Women's 4x100m Relay in the female track world. It's a big comeback for the U.S., which was disqualified in the '08 preliminaries in Beijing. The U.S. also did not finish in 2004's Games, dropping the baton in the final. Twelve years ago, the team earned bronze in Sydney, making it 16 years between gold Team USA Set World Record in Women's 4x100m Relay medal performance for the United States women in this event.