Noah Lyles 100m Victory! A Kalidoscope Of Special Events Add Spice On Budapest’s Favorite Day

Noah Lyles 100m Victory!
A Kalidoscope Of Special Events Add Spice On Budapest’s Favorite Day

2023 World Athetics Championships
Budapest, Hungary
August 20, 2023

Noah Lyles’s magnificent 100m victory was the crown jewel on a very special day (Saint Stephens Day) in Budapest. Here are the events that were enjoyed by a full stadium on Budapest’s favorite holiday.

The Day Two showcase of the World Championships was undeniably the final of the men’s 100-meter dash. It played out like an opera in three parts: Saturday’s preliminary round which saw the favored Americans in top form, and the Day Two semis and final.

m100m – Semi: Those who might have thought that in events leading up to these Championships, Noah Lyles was not showing the requisite sharpness to compete for the 100m gold might want to re-evaluate their assessment after the American’s victory in the opening semi-final round of the men’s 100m semi. Closing hard over the final 30 meters, Lyles looked on his game as he crossed the line in 9.87. In the second heat. USA’s Christian Coleman sent his own message as a good start combined with a solid drive phase propelled him to the final with a semi-final win in 9.88. Jamaica’s Oblique Seville, who had the fastest time in the prior day’s opening round, won the 3rd and final heat in 9.90. Defending 100m champion Fred Kerley was a heat casualty, finishing 3rd, clocking 10.02, and missing a ticket to the finals by 0.01 seconds. Kerley was straightforward in his conversation with Lewis Johnson, “I f—ked up.”

m100m – Final: As expected, tension swirled around the moments of trackside preparation as the 8 finalists prepared for perhaps the biggest event of their careers. Great Britain’s Zharnel Huges was gone with the gun, while USA’s Christian Coleman and Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo (best overall start) were also out well. Lyles’ start was decent, but he had some work to do – and he got right after it, closing fast and gaining on the quicker starters. Noah caught up as the finish line was nearing and clearly was the first across the line in a world-leading 9.84. The next three across were Tobogo (Silver); Hughes (Bronze), and Seville (4th) – all initially clocked in 9.88. USA’s Coleman was next in 9.92, followed by Japan’s Abdul Sani Brown (10.04), Kenya’s Ferdinand Omanyala (10.07), and Jamaica”s Ruiem Forde (10.08). Lyles had found a way to build off those who categorized him as not the favorite. “I believe in myself,” explained the new champion. Noah’s pursuit for the 100m/200m sprint double continues on Day Five.

w1500m – Semi: This semi was a tale of two very different heats. In Heat 1, a dawdling lap prevailed early on as a prelude to some end-game spurts. Kenya’s Nelly Chepchirchir finished 1st in 4:02.14. USA’s Cory McGee finished 3rd in 4:02.70 as the top 6 finishers will advance to Tuesday’s final. Sinclair Johnson did not advance. Heat 2 was quite a different race. Faith Kipyegon was respected by all as she controlled a good portion of the race and crossed first in 3:55.14, followed by Ethiopia’s Dribe Welteji (3:55.18), Sifan Hassan (3:55.48 SB). and Laura Muir (3:56.36 SB). Consider this: USA national champion Nikki Hiltz was last to cross the Heat 2 finish line in 4:00.84. She will not advance. Yet she had a finish time that would have won Heat 1!

m1500, – Semi: Again, two strikingly different races. In Heat 1, UA’s Yared Nuguse (3:32.89) crossed first with Abel Kipsang 2nd (3:32.72) amidst a traffic jam crowd in their wake. With only 6 athletes advancing from each semi to the final, non-advancing 7th place finisher Tshepo Tshite was only 0.29 seconds behind first place finisher Nuguse. In Heat 2, Joss Kerr and USA’s Cole Hocker did most of the early work before Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who had been shuffling in the back of the pack, downshifted with 200m to go, waved to the crowd as he entered the homestretch, and charged on to a gaudy 1st place finish in 3:34.96. (Ingebrigtsen’s winning time was 2 seconds slower than Heat 1’s non-advancing 7th place finisher South Africa’s Tshepo Tshite!)

Heptathlon 800m – Final Event: The 800m – the final event of the Heptathlon – provided a dramatic ending to a grueling multi-event that was held in the oppressive heat. Trailing Great Britain’s Katarina Johnson-Thompson by 47 points after six events, USA’s Anna Hall set sail at the start of the 800 and immediately built a sizable lead in her quest to grab the gold. With a sub-60-second split at 400 meters, Hall looked like she just might pull off a buzzer-beater win. But the Brits began closing the gap. Hall hit the line in an impressive, sun-baked 2:04.09 – good for 1053 points to push her final total to 6720. But Katharina Johnson-Thompson was not be denied, crossing the line in 2:05.63 for 1030 points and a victorious total of 6740. USA’s Chari Hawkins finished 8th with an overall total of 6366. Hard-luck Taliyah Brooks, who was off to a great start on Day One, had no legal mark in the Day Two long jump and did not finish.

mHT- Final: The final of the men’s hammer throw was an up-and-down affair with several lead changes. But the final outcome was a bit of a surprise when Canada’s Ethan Katberg claimed victory with a best mark of 81.25m. Katberg not only captured the gold medal, but he also set a new national record. Poland’s Wojciech Nowicki took the silver with a top heave of 81.02m while Hungary’s Bence Halasz – aided by “home field advantage” and a boisterous Hungarian cheering section – grabbed the bronze with a season’s best of 80.82. Poland’s Pawel Fajdek, who has been on an amazing winning streak in this event, having won gold medals at 5 consecutive World Championships, threw a season’s best heave of 80.00m to finish out of the medals. Neither of the two American athletes was able to make the podium: Daniel Haugh threw a season’s best of 78.64, while Rudy Winkler had a puzzling day, finishing 8th with the best mark of 76.04.

m10,000m – Final: The men’s 10,000m involved the event’s customary intrigue as the race outcome and the identity of the medal winners were far from clear until the moment the line was crossed. The victor was Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei (27.51.42), who successfully defended his title. The winner was followed closely by Kenya’s Daniel Ebenyo (2nd in 27.52.60) and Ethiopia’s Selemen Barega (27.52.72). The top American finisher was William Kincaid (11th in 28:08.71) followed by Sean McGorty (16th in 29:27.54) and Joe Klecker (20th in 29:03.41). / Dave Hunter /