'It is not the Olympics I dreamed of' - Noah Lyles admits regrets about losing 200m title to sensation Letsile Tebogo

'It is not the Olympics I dreamed of' - Noah Lyles admits regrets about losing 200m title to sensation Letsile Tebogo

Evans Ousuru 13:02 - 18.12.2024

Olympic 100mchampion Lyles was favourite to win 200m but only settled for bronze after reportedly running the race with Covid-19.

Paris Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles has apologised for surrendering the 200m title to Letsile Tebogo after promising fireworks before the race.

It was not the race Lyles, a six-time world champion envisioned, given he loudly bragged about his chances of winning and his desire to obliterate Usain Bolt's 200m world record time of 19.19 seconds.

Prior to the event, Lyles boldly claimed his rivals would be 'depressed' when he comes off the turn for the final stretch in the race. "It is not the Olympics I dreamed of but it has left me with so much joy in my heart. I hope everyone enjoyed the show. Whether you were rooting for me or against me, you have to admit you watched, didn't you?," Lyles told TalkSport.

To Lyles' credit, he departed Paris with the title of fastest man on the planet having won the men's 100m final, and still took home 200m bronze despite being unwell.

Tebogo set an African record with a time of 19.46 seconds after beating out pre-race favorite Noah Lyles and Kenneth Bednarek, who won silver and bronze respectively as his victory was celebrated with a national holiday in Botswana.

American Lyles had hoped to take home a few more medals in his suitcase, but it was not to be. "I believe this will be the end of my 2024 Olympics. See you next time - sincerely, your world’s fastest man for the next four years!," Lyles added.

The pair have seen their rivalry hit up after bitter exchanges recently and this will surely extend to the 2025 season where the duo will square it out again at the World Championships in Tokyo.