Noah Lyles, a three-time world champion, went closer to completing an Olympic sprint double by winning the men’s 200 metres with a personal best record at the US Olympic track and field trials.
The American sprinter ran 19.53 seconds at Hayward Field in Eugene, the quickest time of the year in the event. He also surpassed Michael Johnson’s trials mark of 19.66, which had held for 28 years. He initially broke that record by winning the semi-final with a performance record of 19.60 seconds, albeit the wind was just too strong for his time to be recorded.
The defending champion had a lot of work to do, but he passed Olympic silver medallist Kenny Bednarek, who finished second with a personal best of 19.59, in the final 50 metres of the run.
Erriyon Knighton, a twenty-year-old world silver champion, finished third in 19.77 seconds, earning the final Olympic slot in the event.
Lyles, the fastest man in the world
Lyles won the men’s 100 metres at the trials the previous week and made a name for himself as the fastest man in the world at last year’s world championships. He then won the 100 metres in a personal best time of 9.83 seconds before winning his third consecutive 200m title.
With his victories, the athlete admitted: “You claim you’re gonna go out there and win four medals, so the goal had to win the 100 metres and 200 metres. Job is accomplished… I’m right where I need to be.”
The American finished third in the 200 metres in the Tokyo Olympics but has since dominated the distance and will be a major favourite to take gold in the upcoming Paris Olympics in August.
In other related news, Gabby Thomas won the women’s 200 metres in 21.81 seconds, indicating that she could improve on her bronze medal from the Tokyo Olympics. It was the second-fastest time of the year after the 27-year-old ran a world-leading 21.78 in her semifinal.
Thomas declared: “I feel like everything’s coming together right where it needs to and I’ve done my job…Now we’re looking at the gold medal.”
Source: CNN