Noah Lyles got right back on his horse.
A day after his thrilling photo-finish gold-medal win in the 100-meter, the American sprinter won his heat in the 200-meter race at the Paris Olympics on Monday.
The race was surreal, as Lyles looked like he could’ve won it by an even greater margin, but played a little bit of possum and did not fully exert himself at multiple spots.
Noah Lyles, of the United States, competes during a heat in the men’s 200-meter at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Saint-Denis, France. AP
Noah Lyles’ win in his 200-meter heat came a day after his slim victory in the 100-meter. AP
First, Lyles let other competitors get out ahead of him around the turn.
Then, he turned on the jets and passed the field.
At the end of the race, he surveyed the scene and slowed down again once he realized his victory was intact.
Olympic champion Noah Lyles gets right back to work with an easy win in 200m heats. 😲 #ParisOlympics
📺 NBC & Peacock pic.twitter.com/S3uA48gWGJ
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 5, 2024
This win for Lyles came one day after he won gold in the 100-meter by the slimmest of margins.
Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson’s and U.S. sprinter Fred Kerley actually had their feet cross the finish line before Lyles’, but Lyles earned the victory by five thousandths of a second due to a strategic lean of his torso.
Lyles was actually surprised when he was declared the victor.
“I thought I got out-leaned, truly. And me and Kishane were right next to each other, and I was like, ‘I’m gonna have to swallow my pride on this one. I’m gonna be honest, I think you had that one,’” he said.
“And then my name came up and I was like, ‘Oh shoot, I am incredible,’” Lyles continued, laughing.
2024 PARIS OLYMPICS
- Today’s schedule, results, medal counts and more updates
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- NBC Olympics announcer Leigh Diffey botches Noah Lyles gold medal call with wrong winner
- Noah Lyles delivers inspirational message about what he’s overcome to achieve Olympic gold
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The 200-meter semifinals are on Wednesday and the finals are on Thursday.
