Noah Lyles has the chance to make even more history on Thursday.
With his thrilling, photo-finish win in the men’s 100 meters on Sunday, Lyles became the first American to win the race in 20 years.
To officially claim the title of world’s fastest man, however, he will have to win the men’s 200-meter final.
If he can claim another gold medal in Paris, Lyles will be the first man to win both the 100 and 200 since Usain Bolt in 2016.
The Jamaican, who retired in 2017, still holds the world record of 9.58 in the 100m and 19.19 in the 200m.
Lyles would be the first American man to win the men’s 200-meter since Shawn Crawford in 2004.
However, the 27-year-old Gainesville, Fla., native uncharacteristically placed second in his semifinal heat on Wednesday, which is his first loss in the distance in three years.
Adding to the intrigue, Lyles did not stop to speak to reporters after the race and went to the medical tent, a USA Track and Field spokesperson said, according to the Associated Press.
His coach, Lance Brauman, said, “He’s fine.”
Despite the loss, Lyles still has a good chance at the gold. The 200 is his signature race; he won bronze in Tokyo for his first Olympic medal.
A year later, at the 2022 world championships in Oregon, he set a personal best time to earn gold in 19.31 seconds, which is just 0.01 shy of the Olympic record Bolt set at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
Lyles also lost both his opening heat and the semifinal round of the 100 before his .005-second victory over Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson.
Lyles finished the semifinal heat with a time of 20.08 seconds, behind Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo (19.96), but with plenty of speed to guarantee a spot in the final.
His time was the third-fastest overall among all three semifinal heats.
Outside of Tebogo, Lyles trailed fellow American Kenny Bednarek, who beat Lyles to win silver in Tokyo, with a 20.00 finish.
Alexander Ogando of the Dominican Republic and Erriyon Knighton of the U.S. have also made the final.
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Defending gold medalist Andre De Grasse of Canada finished third in his semifinal heat and did not advance to the final.
The 200 is the second event on the sprint triple list. If he wins, Lyles would need a gold medal in the men’s 4×100 relay final on Friday to be among elite company.
Only four men have accomplished the sprint triple, including three Americans: Jesse Owens (1936), Bobby Morrow (1956), and Carl Lewis (1984).
Bolt is the only runner to have completed the triple in three separate Olympics (2008, 2012, 2016).
