Noah Lyles already earned the title of ‘World’s Fastest Man’ by winning the 100-meter sprint at the Olympics on an epic photo finish. However, his sights are set on a clean sweep of the 1/2 double, with 200-meter competition set to continue on Wednesday and Thursday.
He tried to stay quiet before his second race in Paris but Fred Kerley poked the bear and got Lyles to talk some trash before the semifinals.
It is not often that Lyles keeps his thoughts to himself. The 27-year-old American superstar is known for his boisterous personality and immense self-confidence. Rarely does he hold back how he is feeling or what he intends to do to his competition.
Lyles talked a lot of talk prior to the 100 and guaranteed a win. His bold declaration proved true when his clavicle cross the finish line less than one half second in front of the second-place finisher. He backed up his talk and shut up the Jamaican delegation with the exhilarating win.
Rinse, repeat.
With the 200-meter Semifinals scheduled for Wednesday and the Final on Thursday, Lyles did it again. The bronze medalist from Tokyo guaranteed gold in Paris.
Lyles tried to stay fairly respectful with his initial comments about the competition in the 200. Kerley then interjected and encouraged him to talk his talk, so he did.
Noah Lyles was trying to be a lil respectful until Fred Kerley poked him to talk his shit 🗣️
— Track Spice 🌶️ (@trackspice) August 5, 2024
“None of them is winning. When I come off the turn, they will be depressed” pic.twitter.com/yZ8WrzxyO7
It is expected that Lyles will complete the double but it won’t be easy. Botswana’s Letsile Tobogo, defending champion Andre De Grasse of Canada, and Americans Erryion Knighton and Kenny Bednarek are his biggest challengers. They are all running in great form.
However, none of them matter to Noah Lyles. He is fully confident that he will win the 200 after claiming gold by 0.005 in the 100. The target is squarely on his back but that’s just how he likes it!