Noah Lyles wins 100m final by 5 thousandths of a second as Usain Bolt's Colosseum captures photo finish at Olympics
Noah Lyles ended USA's 20-year wait to claim the world's most prestigious title in sprinting at the Olympics. He won the 100m gold by 5 thousandths of a second.
Arriving at the monumental Stade de France as the world champion, ace sprinter Noah Lyles completed the thrilling men's 100m final of the Paris Olympics 2024 in 9.784 seconds to become the fastest man on the planet. Putting the United States of America (USA) on top in the medal standings on Sunday, Lyles secured a photo-finish win in the closest 100m final contested in modern history of the Olympics at the Paris Games.
Showman Lyles was seen wearing sunglasses, a hat and even a mask to reduce the unwanted attention he garnered in the build-up to the blockbuster 100m men's final at the Olympic Village. Making a sluggish start, the American clocked at 10.04 seconds and was behind Louie Hinchliffe, the British sprinter coached by Carl Lewis. Flashing his Team USA-themed nail polish and making signs like an elite WWE superstar, Lyles was nothing but a crowd-puller in the semi-finals of the 100m event at the Paris Games.
ALSO READ: Catch HT's comprehensive coverage of the 2024 Paris Olympics here
Death stare by a Jamaican in Paris
Despite the massive hype, the 27-year-old capped off his second-sluggish start as the US sprinter finished behind Jamaica's Oblique Seville in the semi-finals. Two months before the Games, sprinter Seville stared down Lyles at the Racers Grand Prix. Seville again gave Lyles a death stare in the semi-finals of the Paris Olympics. What happened in the final after the showdown between the two sprinters is history.
100m gold by 5 thousandths of a second
Lyles emerged victorious in the closest-ever Olympic 100-metre final by five-thousandths of a second. In a photo finish, Lyles eclipsed Jamaica's Kishane Thompson with a personal best of 9.79 seconds—the same timing as the Jamaican, only separated by the width of a vest. Interestingly, Lyles clocked at 9.784sec to Thompson's 9.789sec, although both sprinters were listed as 9.79sec after the nerve-shredding summit clash. American Fred Kerley bagged bronze in 9.81, and South Africa's Akani Simbini finished fourth in the final standings.
What separated the gold and silver medallists in the men's 100 final at the Paris Games? World champion Lyles timed his dip to perfection to upstage Thompson by the barest of margins. If the dash had been 99 metres, Thompson would have sealed Jamaica's fourth 100m win in five Olympics. The men's 100m final was the blue-riband event at the Olympics during the Usian Bolt era.
Usain Bolt's Colosseum
Dubbed the undisputed sprint king, Bolt finished his career with eight Olympic gold medals—one was later revoked as Nesta Carter was found guilty of doping. Bolt holds the world records for the 100m and 200m events. The celebrated sprinter shattered the world record by winning the 100m event at the Beijing Olympics. Bolt earned three gold medals (100m, 200m, and 4x100m) at the London 2012 Games and three at the Rio 2016 Games.
Can Lyles equal Bolt's feat in Paris?
The invincible sprinter claimed his third straight Olympic 100m gold at the Rio Games. Bolt's 100m Olympic record (9.63 seconds) at the London 2012 Olympics is still untouched, and the sprint legend also holds the world record of 9.58, which he set back in 2009. USA's Lyles is eyeing to become the first sprinter to win both the 100m and 200m events at the Olympics since Bolt. Will Bolt's Colosseum capture another photo finish in Paris? Only time will tell.