3 Silly Mistakes That Costed Noah Lyles a Gold Medal in His Career

Noah Lyles, a name synonymous with speed, has been making quite a few claims this season from 400m relay to Usain Bolt’s world record. And with his lightning-fast strides and his uncanny ability to dominate both 100 and 200m races, he has rightfully earned his place amongst the elite. However, even the most accomplished athletes encounter hurdles along the way, and for Lyles, a few missteps costed him the ultimate prize—the Gold Medal.

Despite his dominance on the track, there have been times when Noah Lyles failed to strike the gold due to his own errors. One such instance was seen during the 2024 Florida Relays, where his fumble cost his team a podium finish. Let’s delve deeper and explore the times when Lyles’ on-field blunders resulted in missing out on a gold medal.

Some unlikely Noah Lyles things in the Florida Relays

Lyles has said previously that team events are as important for him as individual ones, and to prove himself in the latter category, the Gainesville native assisted Team USA at the 2023 World Championships in bagging gold. However, Olympian failed to meet the fans’ expectations at the Florida Relays, where he was competing for the USA Red team. In an exciting outdoor season opener, Noah Lyles and his longtime rival Christian Coleman were surprisingly on the same team and were up against Grant Holloway’s and Erriyon Knighton’s Gainesville Elite on Sunday.

Going by his reputation, Coleman provided his team with a much-needed lead in the second leg with his lightning-fast speed. Kendal Williams in the third leg had to pass the baton to Lyles for the final lap, but Noah Lyles could not grab the baton on time in the decider leg, and Joseph Fahnbulleh of Gainesville Elite finished the race before leaving no chance of redemption for him. Well, this was a forgettable outing for Lyles, as his small mistake cost him and his team much-needed “tire warming” prior to the main lap in the remainder of the outdoor season.

When Lyles jumped the gun: A costly misstep in the race against Coleman

As reported by NBC Sports, the incident unfolded during the 2023 Millrose Games when Noah Lyles was facing his compatriot Christian Coleman for a 60-meter dash. The Olympic bronze medalist was one of the primary contenders for the title as he was already a world champion and Olympic medalist at the time, but the start of the race didn’t really go in Lyles favor, and he was disqualified for a false start due to a flinch in the blocks.

This was one of the rarest moments when Lyles’ excitement backfired for him. Nonetheless, the triple world champion was eventually allowed to participate in the race after he protested the decision, leading to a reversal of the verdict. However, the six-time world champion still could not beat Coleman, who has made the 60-meter category an unbreakable territory and won the race with a 6.47-second finish. On the other hand, Noah Lyles had to satisfy with the second-fastest time of his 60-meter career, crossing the finish line in 6.53 seconds.

The time when Lyles shattered the 200-meter world record but later faced humiliation

On the global stage of the Inspiration Games that were held in 2020, Noah Lyles shocked the world with a 200-meter sub-19 record and finished the race with an astounding finish of 18.90 seconds. Going by the records, it might have broken the world record of 19.19 seconds set by Usain Bolt and his own personal best of 19.50 seconds at the time, but it was later discovered that the American phenom had covered a “shorter distance” compared to the orthodox length. It was reported at the time that he had only run 185 meters due to lining up in the wrong lane, which became the reason for his embarrassment.

“You can’t be playing with my emotions like this … got me in the wrong line,” is what a devastated Noah Lyles wrote on his X handle post the event. He was up against Christophe Lemaitre from Zurich and Churandy Martina of Papendal, Netherlands, while both runners finished the race. Lemaitre cut the tape in an incredible 20.65 seconds and took home the cash reward of $10,000 along with the title. On the other hand, Martina placed second with a 20.81 second finish, and it remained unclear why Noah Lyles started from the long line and ran only 185 meters.

But as they say, the journey’s start may vary, but the finish leaves a lasting impression, as is the case with the American genius, as Lyles came with all the guns blazing in almost every outing in his career later. Especially at the 2023 World Athletics Champions, where he joined an elite list of athletes to achieve an individual sprinting double (gold in both 100m and 200m), which has legendary names like Tyson Gay and Usain Bolt after hitting the three peat at the event.