One wondered what Noah Lyles had up his sleeves since the US Champs!
Do you remember them? That was where Noah Lyles went by Errioyon Knighton in the last centimters of the race and wagged his finger at Erriyon Knighton.
Lyles just played with it, and Knighton was not a happy camper.
Well, Noah Lyles has been on his A plus game in Eugene during the World Champs!
His heat, number 7 in round 1 was a 19.98. Not anything more than he needed.
Then came the semi finals, and Noah Lyles ran 19.62 in semi 2 and again no one was near
him.
Two hours before the race, I met Mr. Tommie Smith, the 1968 Olympic gold medalist.
Tommie told me that while he thought Erriyon Knighton and Kenny Bednarek were good,
he thought that Noah Lyles would win.
I had just told a TV crew that was interviewing me that I thought, ” Noah will run at least
19.45.”
Noah would not have stirred it up with Erriyon unless he could deliver.
And in the final, he truly did!
Noah Lyles (see below) had one of his best starts and was in the lead at the turn. It was
there that he turned on the afterburners, and he flew down the final stretch, running 19.31, a
new American record.
Of his amazing race, Noah said this in the Mixed Zone:
“I was truly in form for a world record, but I am Ok with the American record. I felt I got the best start I could possibly ask for. The race was basically set up for me. I was given lane six, an outside lane. To be honest, every step was purposeful, going out with the intent to win. I’ve given my all. I literally had nothing left after I crossed the finish line. It’s an immaculate feeling to be on the podium with two fellow Americans. I remember when I first got on the professional scene, I said we are going to come out as Americans and kill it. When I remember in Doha, it was just me. I felt kind of lonely. I’ve got two people running just as fast. They are close behind me. We are a dominant force in America now. This is by far the most fun I’ve ever had at a track meet, and we still have the 4x100m to do. I thought I was changing last year. It scared me. I was fearful, and I wanted to get the spark I had back. I did, I enjoyed it, and I am still putting pressure on myself. When I start doing that, I have more fun and that’s what I keep reminding myself. There’s no pressure. There’s pure fun out here. My coach and I said this is going to be our greatest year ever. That started with grabbing the American record. There’s a big difference between being number 4 and number 3. When I ran 19.50 I remember saying how the heck Michael Johnson ran 19.30s? And then how did they get it to 19.2 and then 19.19? Then I said, let’s not worry about it. When the time comes and the time finally came. I just knew I could reach for (those times).”
This was a very exciting race to watch. I don’t think “Shattered” is an appropriate term though for a record broken by 0.01 seconds.
I like your point about the term, Shattered. Sometimes, when I am editing, I get into the habits of thinking too much about records. I will take you comment under advisement. Thanks!