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Usain Bolt’s retirement in 2017 left a void in the world of athletics. The sport desperately needed the next big star — a crowd puller who can rally the masses.
By claiming a sprint treble — 100m, 200m and 4x100m — at the 2023 World Athletics Championship in Budapest, Noah Lyles has taken the first step towards filling Bolt’s shoes.
Lyles, who retained the 200m crown, also became the first athlete to win the sprint treble in the World championship after Bolt (in 2015).
With three 200m wins at the World championships, Lyles surpassed fellow-Americans Michael Johnson and Calvin Smith (two golds each) to sit second on the all-time 200m winners list at the mega event. Only Bolt, with four golds, is ahead of Lyles.
Delivering on his promise
Lyles had promised that something special was at store in the Hungarian capital, and he delivered.
The gold rush began with the 100m, where a slow start left Lyles behind fellow American Christian Coleman. Lyles then kicked into top gear, pulling ahead of Coleman and the rest of the field to claim his first World championship 100m gold.
Lyles had an easier time of it in the 200m, as he glided around the bend in pole position. Lyles was without competition in the home straight, as his patented late acceleration proved too hot to handle.
When Brandon Carnes passed the baton to anchor Lyles in the 4x100m, Lyles held a small lead over nearest rival, Jamaican Rohan Watson. Lyles took off all guns blazing, and flashed three fingers as he went past the finish line.
While his splendid performance at Budapest is bound to draw comparisons with Bolt, Lyles’ timings are not in the same league. Lyles won the 100m with a personal best timing of 9.83s — a great deal slower than Bolt’s world record 9.58s run.
Lyles’ 200m timing of 19.52s was slower than his personal best of 19.31s clocked at the 2022 World Championship at Eugene. Bolt reigns supreme in this event as well, having set the bar high at 19.19s.
“Of course I wanted it to be faster. I at least wanted to break the American record again,” Lyles said, referring to his 19.31s set at Eugene. “Of course I still have the ability to. But after my sixth race, and I still ran 19.52s — I have to be happy with that,” he said.
But overall, Lyles exited the World championship a happy man. “I definitely do think I’ve achieved something special. I’m running fast, against an amazing field. Shoot, what a World championships!,” Lyles said.
No shying away
Lyles does not shy away from the fact that he has a lot of work to do before he can break Bolt’s world records. “As I went to bed last night (after winning the third gold), I rolled over and told my girlfriend that with a little bit of rest, I can take a shot at the world record at Zurich (at the Weltklasse Zurich event). There is nothing stopping me.
Also read | Is there a worthy heir to Usain Bolt’s throne in the 100m and 200m sprints?
“Something that was said a lot after my 200m gold here was that I did not run a good time. My reply is that you can go after the world record any day. There is never going to be a moment when I stop chasing the world record.
“I saw that Michael Johnson chased the 400m world record for six to eight years. That is almost a whole career, but he eventually got it. All that matters is that when I get it, it will be all mine,” Lyles told the LetsRun.com Youtube channel.
Lyles has sparked a renewed interest in track in his country, which has not produced a household name after Justin Gatlin. Lyles runs his own Youtube channel — a great tool for self-promotion. A new Netflix show on world athletics, set along the lines of ‘Formula 1: Drive to Survive’, will only increase Lyles’ popularity. The show will release before the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“They (Netflix) were not talking about me at the beginning (of the shooting process). But as soon as I won in the Paris Diamond League in June, they got buddy-buddy with me really quick,” Lyles joked.
Ruffling feathers
The 27-year-old boldly speaks his truth, even if it ruffles feathers. A couple of days ago, Lyles took a jibe at the North American professional basketball league, NBA.
“You know the thing that hurts me the most? I have to watch the NBA finals, and they have ‘World Champion’ on their heads. World champion of what? The United States? Don’t get me wrong, I love the United States, at times. But that is not the world. We (athletics) are the world. We have almost every country out here fighting and representing their flags. There are no flags in the NBA,” Lyles said.
Predictably, his comments did not go down well with NBA players and other Americans. Lyles, however, must be praised for voicing an opinion that most of the world only mutters under their breath.
Lyles may be a polarising figure, but there is no doubt that he is good for the sport. He brings much-needed attention to track and field, and is keen to do his part to popularise his chosen field.
‘Needs better marketing’
“Track and field needs to market itself better. It’s easy to market me — I’m excitable, happy and engaging with the crowd. But just like there are athletes like me, there are others with different qualities.
“Guys like Christian (Coleman) or Fred (Kerley) bring that serious demeanour that some fans relate to. In terms of personalities, we have everything you need right here in track and field. These stories just need to be told better,” Lyles stated.
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