Support truly
independent journalism
As athletics searches for a successor to Usain Bolt as the sport’s undisputed male sprinting star, Noah Lyles is shooting free from the pack. The great Jamaican’s world records remain out of reach (for now) but last summer, Lyles became the first man since Bolt to secure a sprint triple at the World Championships in Budapest, a glorious, gilded confirmation of the potential that the American had long shown.
The 26-year-old had proved himself as the world’s best over 200m twice previously but it was his victory in the blue riband sprint that shot him into the stratosphere. Lyles had travelled to Hungary as an outsider, third at the US trials and in the shadow of compatriot Christian Coleman as the two settled into their blocks on the startline. Coleman, as is the wont of the best starter in the world, flew out but slowed up; Lyles surged through, past Letsile Tebogo and Zharnel Hughes and into the history books.
Days later, Lyles and Coleman were both part of the fearsome American quartet that proved too quick for the rest in the 4x100m relay, completing Lyles’ clean sweep of the male sprinting titles. Not since Bolt in 2015 had the feat been achieved.
But it not the limit of Lyles’ ambitions. “He was the fastest man ever to do it,” Lyles said to CNN about Bolt earlier this year. “And soon, it’ll be me.”
It was a bold declaration from a man who seems to carry the calm and confidence required to be a prolific winner on the track. Born in Gainesville, Florida, Lyles was a gymnast in his youth and picked up sprinting more seriously as a teenager, representing the USA at the Youth Olympic Games in 2014.
The youngster very nearly made the Olympics proper while still at school, smashing records to finish fourth at the US trials before Rio 2016, and turning professional soon after. Almost immediately, Noah and his younger brother Josephus were inked to lucrative deals with Adidas.
It is a relationship still going strong. In February, Lyles recommitted to a long-term deal encompassing the next two Summer Olympics believed to be the largest track and field sponsorship agreement since Bolt’s retirement. “When I first signed with Adidas in 2016 along with my brother, Josephus, that was like a dream come true for us,” said Lyles. “And today is just a continuation of that childhood dream.
“Adidas is not only taking care of me and my family at a level I could only imagine, but they understand me and my vision – not only do I want to achieve all I can in this sport both on and off the track, but I want to make real change and improvements in the sport and how it’s run for the generations that come after me. That is what drives me.”
Having won his first world title over 200m in 2019, Lyles returned from Tokyo 2020 disappointed to take home only a bronze over the distance. Recognising that improvements had to be made, he has put more time into the indoor scene and the 60m distance at which teammate Coleman excels, pushing him close in Glasgow earlier this year to take his first indoor medal.
Lyles subsequently showed himself to be a true team player by making a surprise appearance in the United States’ 4x400m quartet for the final at the World Indoors, picking up a second silver of the Championships.
2024 could be the year he ascends to true global stardom. Before the chase for three golds on the track in Paris this summer, Lyles has been one of the stars of a six-part Netflix documentary tracking some of the world’s top sprinters. He hopes it will allow athletics to thrive again as a globally-relevant sport.
“I feel we have a great sport,” he told The Guardian. “But I am a firm believer that track and field is just not marketed the right way. We could do a better job in selling ourselves and selling our stories.“
Lyles’ story of world dominance is not hard to sell. “I’m using [last year’s] World Championships as a blueprint,” he said ahead of the Olympics. “I won three gold medals, and that’s going to be my exact same goal when I go to the Olympics.”
