Noah Lyles was the most targeted man in Olympic track and field in Paris.
His competitors wanted to beat him and finally silence his mouth. Others wanted to see him lose simply so they could go off on him for his arrogance.
In the 100m, the man many, including the NBC broadcaster calling the finals, thought had silenced Lyles was Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson. But the photo finish revealed that Lyles edged him out by the width of a collarbone.
Afterward, Lyles screamed into the camera “America! I told you. I got this!” and ran around the track in celebration.
That widened the target on his back.
In the 200m qualifying rounds, the voices of his critics grew louder each round as Lyles advanced but didn’t win any of his heats. That wasn’t detrimental, so most didn’t think much of it.
Heading into the final, drama first swirled when Lyles received a more favorable lane assignment than U.S. teammate Kenny Bednareck, who finished ahead of him in the semifinals.
Then, before the runners got into the blocks, Lyles made a spectacle of himself, running up and down and screaming. Despite his strange and ridiculous antics, the race commenced.
In the end, none of it mattered as Botswana’a Letsile Tebogo blazed through the line in 19.46 to claim gold over Bednareck and Lyles.
While the world stood stunned, both Botswana and Africa celebrated Tebogo’s historic victory.
Then the camera panned to Lyles, who was lying down on the ground. He remained there until he was finally escorted off the track in a wheelchair. As it turned out, he had Covid but ran the race anyway. Afterward, more attention was given to Lyles’ decision to run while sick than Tebogo’s incredible win.
That attention has been priceless for the sport.
Track is one of the greatest sports in the world. Unfortunately, most of America only seems to care every four years despite the multitude of global and domestic events broadcast annually. As a result, some athletes have taken it upon themselves to craft a personality that draws attention to both them and the sport.
Now, that doesn’t mean that it’s a bad personality. Instead, they’ve put their charisma and persona into overdrive to garner the attention they and the sport rightfully deserve.
Sometimes it creates a rivalry, like the traditional one that’s long existed between Jamaica and the U.S. We witnessed it after Sha’Carri Richardson finished last at the Prefontaine Classic in August 2021 and we’re seeing it bubble up again after Lyles out-leaned Thompson.
In 2021, DJ Metcalf bravely attempted to run a 100m event against pro athletes. While he proved he was fast, he also proved that he wasn’t pro sprinter fast. A few months later, Tyreek Hill entered the chat by claiming the Bolt “couldn’t see” him in a 40-yard dash.
Last year, Noah Lyles sparked a beef with NBA players after he said they weren’t world champions.
“World Champions? Of what!? The United States?!” exclaimed Lyles, winner of three gold medals at the 2023 World Championships.
“We are the world,” continued Lyles, referring to all of the competitors at the event. “We have almost every country out here fighting, thriving, putting on their flag to show that they are represented. There are no flags in the NBA.”
That led to an uproar from the NBA community and his words haven’t been forgotten (good thing he won the Olympic 100m because the NBA community was ready to pounce).
Earlier this week, Hill jumped back into the mix and challenged Lyles to race.
“I would beat Noah Lyles,” Hill said on the “Up & Adams” podcast. “I’m not going to beat him by a lot, but I would beat Noah Lyles.”
He also called the 100m champion out, saying he pretended to be sick.
“Noah Lyles can’t say nothing after just what happened to him,” Hill said. “He wants to come out and pretend that he’s sick. I feel that’s like horseradish. For him to do that and say that, that we’re not world champions of our sport? Come on brother, speak on what you know about, and that’s track.”
While Lyles has both put his spikes in his mouth and silenced the doubters, the controversy he sparks has been absolute gold for the sport, which thrives on the attention it gets from these moments.
Because of Sha’Carri’s brash style and unwavering confidence, fans tuned in to support her while critics tuned in to watch her fail.
Now that Lyles has won the 100m and lost the 200m, he’s receiving the same type of reaction.
But the fact remains that people are tuning in, and that gives track the attention it needs, especially outside of the Olympic years.
While it’s a shame that track gains more popularity through controversy, I know that the sport isn’t crying about it. Instead, they’re ready to capitalize on the next rivalry or, more importantly, “beef” that surfaces.
