Subhi Agrawal
American World Champion Noah Lyles can claim the title of “the fastest man alive” after winning gold in the men’s 100m race in a true photo finish.
He became the first American to win this event since 2004.
Lyles claim his first Olympic gold
Lyles finished the race in 9.79 seconds, a personal best, in the Sunday night competition at Stade de France, to claim his first Olympic gold. Before the race began, Lyles, known for his dramatics and showmanship, entered the tracks with arms raised to whip up the crowd. He finished his pre-race by sprinting a quarter of the 100-meter distance he was about to run.
Initially, when the shot was fired, the American had a typically slow start but soon accelerated enough to beat Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson, who was the fastest man this year before tonight. Thompson also posted 9.79, leading to a nail-biting few moments as everyone in the stadium waited for the photo finish results to develop.
Lyles thought Thompson had won the race
Photo finish results showed Lyles leaned forward to cross the line five-thousands of a second faster than Thompson.
“I was like, oh man I’m really gonna have to swallow my pride, which I don’t have a problem doing. Respect deserves respect, and everybody in the field to be honest came out knowing that they could win this race.”
Lyles told the reporters that he thought that Thompson had won the race before the final results were posted. Fred Kerley of the U.S. came in third place .02 seconds later to win bronze.
Lyles’ victory in the 100m is the first U.S. gold in the Olympic event since Justin Gatlin won in 2004.
First Jamaican to make it to the podium
Thompson will be the first Jamaican to make it to the podium since Usain Bolt’s Olympic reign ended with the Rio de Janeiro Games in 2016.
“This is the closest medal,” Thompson said after the race. “I couldn’t see him, but I thought he was seeing me. He said, ‘Hey Kishane I thought you got it,’ and I said, ‘I am not sure.’ “
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