Budapest 2023: Noah Lyles wants to Usain Bolt’s 200m world record
American Noah Lyles is officially the fastest man in the world since last Sunday, when he was proclaimed World 100m champion in Budapest now his dream is to break Usain Bolt’s 19.19 sec 200 m world record.
In the Hungarian capital he aspires to the triple - 100, 200, and 4x100 - but on his radar are the Paris 2024 Games and, above all, Usain Bolt's untouchable records.
He is going straight ahead and does not intend to slow down. And whoever doesn't move aside will end up being run over...
Speaking about the 100m title Lyles said,” I don't think I could have asked for a better script. In the heats, I didn't like running in lane 9, but maybe that's what I needed to focus on myself. [Ferdinand] Omanyala was running in lane 4 and I knew he was going to run fast so that was a motivation for me because I had travelled to Budapest to win every one of my races.
“I was very happy with my debut and already in the semi-finals I faced a race very similar to the series, with the difference that I was going down a better lane (lane 4) and my competitive ability was sharpened and ready to attack. Besides, my start was perfect, just as I had been training for the last few months, and I especially liked that because training is not the same as competing. The tension is very different.
“After 60 meters I knew that the race was 'over' for me because Omanyala was suffering and couldn't keep up with me. At that point, I got excited and thought of all the times the Kenyan greets his competitors as he passes them but I made sure that this time it didn't happen and that he knew it. In the end, I went in relaxed and slowing down, despite which I ran 9.87, just one-hundredth of a second off my personal best. I was excited and ready for the final because I felt so good. I think all of that, the two previous races, was reflected in my mood and how I approached the last one because I felt very strong, almost invincible.”
Now his sight is set on breaking the 200m world record,
