American sprinter Noah Lyles has secured gold in the 100m final at the 2024 Paris Olympics, but not without stirring up reactions and controversy in the semifinal and final respectively. The 27-year-old won in one of the tightest 100m showdowns in Olympic history, edging out Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson by a mere five-thousandths of a second.
In the semifinal earlier on Sunday, Lyles finished second to Jamaica’s Oblique Seville, with only 0.02 seconds separating them. The race garnered attention not just for its close finish, but for Lyles’ behavior at the end. Despite coming in second, Lyles was seen staring down Seville as they crossed the finish line, possibly believing he had won. This incident echoed a similar situation from June, where Seville had initiated a stare-down towards Lyles.
The final proved even more dramatic and controversial. Lyles claimed gold with a time of 9.79 seconds, just ahead of Thompson’s 9.80. The photo finish left fans and viewers puzzled, with many taking to social media to express their confusion and frustration. Some viewers believed Thompson had won, with one X user stating, “Thompson was robbed. He beat Noah.”
The controversy stemmed from the fact that while Thompson’s foot appeared to cross the line first, the winner in track races is determined by who gets their chest across the finish line first. This rule left many spectators perplexed, with one user asking, “Is it head first to win? Thompson’s foot clearly over.”
Despite the confusion, Lyles’ victory marks a significant moment in his career, following his bronze medal at the Tokyo Games in 2021. It also represents the first American gold in the event since Justin Gatlin’s win in 2004.
The final was historic in its own right, with all eight runners breaking the 10-second barrier in a wind-legal race for the first time in Olympic history. Fred Kerley of the USA claimed bronze with a time of 9.81 seconds while defending champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs of Italy finished fifth.
After his victory, Lyles expressed his elation, saying, “It’s the one I wanted, it’s the hard battle, it’s the amazing opponents. Everybody came prepared for the fight and I wanted to prove that I’m the man among all of them, I’m the wolf among wolves.”
