Stephen Francis, who has coached Kishane Thompson into becoming one of the most exciting young sprinters in the world, has now told his protege the mistake he made that cost him gold to Noah Lyles at the Olympic final in Paris last August.
In one of the most thrilling 100-meter finals in Olympic history, Jamaican sprinter Kishane Thompson narrowly missed out on gold to Noah Lyles at the Paris Games, both clocking an identical time of 9.79 seconds. However, Lyles secured the victory by mere milliseconds, leaving Thompson with silver and Fred Kerley taking bronze at 9.81 seconds.
While fans and pundits debated the race, Maximising Speed and Velocity (MVP) Track Club head coach Stephen Francis, a legendary figure in sprint coaching, delivered a blunt assessment of what cost Thompson the top spot on the podium.
Francis pointed to Thompson’s slow reaction time as the key factor that compromised his race. Thompson left the blocks 0.176 seconds after the starting gun, one of the slowest among the field. Interestingly, Lyles, who tied with Letsile Tebogo for the slowest reaction time at 0.178 seconds, managed to power through with remarkable efficiency to claim gold.
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“Your blocks let you down,” Francis candidly remarked on Sprint, urging Thompson to address this weakness as he prepares for future competitions.
He stated in a separate interview: “Noah Lyles won. He is a good athlete, but you cannot allow yourself to get down to his level, which is what happened to Kishane. That said, I believe he performed very well.”
During an appearance on Season Two of Netflix's Sprint, Thompson reflected on his performance, admitting that he could have secured gold if he had trusted his speed throughout the race. His comments shed light on the mental and technical challenges sprinters face at the highest level.
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'It shook my exsistence' -Why Kishane Thompson is still furious to have lost to Noah Lyles at Paris Olympic 100m final
Kishane Thompson is still unhappy with his second place finish in the final of the 100 meter race at the Paris 2024 Olympic games, where he narrowly lost to Noah Lyles, who the Jamaican believes he is 'actually faster than'.
Despite the disappointment, Thompson’s silver medal performance confirmed his status as one of the fastest sprinters in the world. However, Francis’s critique underscores the fine margins in elite sprinting, where even a fraction of a second at the start can determine the outcome.
As Thompson looks ahead to the 2025 World Championships and other marquee events, his ability to refine his start will likely play a pivotal role in his quest for gold. With Francis’s guidance and his undeniable talent, Thompson remains a formidable contender on the global stage.
This race will undoubtedly go down in history as a showcase of raw speed, precision, and the ever-present drama of track and field. For Thompson, it is a valuable lesson in the pursuit of perfection.