Japan had a shot at its first 4x100-meter relay Olympic gold as it led into the final straight but slipped back to eventually finish fifth on the Paris Games athletics track on Friday.
The 2016 Rio de Janeiro silver medalist was in front at the final handover but Koki Ueyama was swamped by the field and crossed in 37.78 seconds at Stade de France, 0.28 behind the winning team from Canada.
Canadian anchor Andre De Grasse finished in 37.50, with South Africa securing silver in 37.57 and Britain bronze a further 0.04 behind.
Japan made personnel and order changes from Thursday's heat and the risky decision paid dividends early.
Ryuichiro Sakai, who replaced Hiroki Yanagita in the final, finished fifth on his lead-off leg before Abdul Hakim Sani Brown sped down the back straight with the leg's fastest time.
Yoshihide Kiryu followed suit to be fastest over the third leg as Japan, helped by their smooth baton changes, led the way. But Ueyama was passed by the anchors of the three medal-winners as well as Italy.
"I could have been more aggressive. The acceleration wasn't bad but I could have passed it to Kiryu with a bit more of a lead," said the 25-year-old Sani Brown, who narrowly missed out on the men's 100-meter final.
"It's been a frustrating result overall, we've been pushing each other in the 100 and the relay but to no avail. I'll reflect on these games, but this isn't the end of my career," said Sani Brown.
"We have the world championships in Tokyo next year, Los Angeles (Olympics) in 2028 and I want to finish with a gold."
Kiryu, part of the 2016 silver-winning team, said Japanese sprinters have to step up and match Sani Brown if they want to compete with the world's best.
"We made this abrupt decision to ask Hakim to run the second leg, although we knew he was tired," the 28-year-old said. "I feel we're reliant on him to a degree, we can't be left behind and each need to be able to compete with him equally."
"The team members might have been different (here) but the baton is passing on the tradition of Japanese sprint. I don't know if I can make the next games but I'll aim to get faster."
Earlier, Japan reached the men's 4x400 relay final for the first time since the 2004 Athens Games by finishing fourth in its heat, clocking 2 minutes, 59.48 seconds for a national record.
Three of the team members -- Yuki Joseph Nakajima, Fuga Sato and Kentaro Sato -- skipped their individual repechage on Monday to focus on the relay.
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