Noah Lyles lived up to the hype with a remarkable performance, narrowly winning the closest-ever Olympic 100 meters final by just five thousandths of a second on Sunday. This win ended a 20-year drought for the U.S. in the event.
Noah Lyles initially feared he might have missed his chance to overtake the strong Kishane Thompson, but the giant screen confirmed his victory. Lyles clocked a personal best of 9.79 seconds, matching Thompson’s time but edging him out by the slimmest of margins.
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Had the race been 99 meters, Thompson would have claimed his fourth Jamaican men’s 100m title in five Olympics. However, Lyles’s precise timing at the finish secured him the gold, adding to his world title.
In triumph, Lyles removed his name bib and proudly displayed his red, white, and blue varnished nails, declaring himself the world’s fastest man.
“This is the one I wanted; it’s the hard battle, it’s the amazing opponents,” said Lyles, the first American man to win the Olympic 100m since Justin Gatlin in 2004. “I didn’t do this against a slow field—I did this against the best of the best, on the biggest stage, with the biggest pressure.”
It was a historic race, with all eight finalists running under 10 seconds, marking the first time in a wind-legal 100 meters final.
American Fred Kerley took bronze with a time of 9.81 seconds, while South Africa’s Akani Simbine finished fourth with a national record of 9.83 seconds. Defending champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs of Italy, hampered by injuries, finished fifth in 9.85 seconds. Letsile Tebogo of Botswana set a national record with a time of 9.86 seconds, placing sixth.
