Noah Lyles wins 200m gold at Zurich Diamond League 2023 after scoring a double sprint at world championship

Noah Lyles has grabbed another gold medal this season. On Thursday, August 31, the American athlete won the 200m gold in the Diamond League Zürich Weltklasse meet. At the recent World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, Lyles won an impressive double sprint in the 100m and 200m races.

At the Zurich Diamond League, the 26-year-old cruised to a 200m victory in 19.80s. The gold medallist left behind American athlete Erriyon Knighton and Britain’s Zharnel Hughes. While Knighton achieved the silver medal within a 19.87s time frame, Zharnel settled for the bronze, clocking in at 19.94s. This is Lyles’ sixth gold medal in the Diamond League meet.

Lyles at Day 7 - World Athletics Championships Budapest 2023

Before competing in the Zurich Diamond League, Lyles showed an exemplary performance at the 2023 World Athletics Championships a few days ago. He competed in the 100m race and won it, clocking an impressive 9.83s time. It marked his first-ever 100m gold medal win at the world championships.

The American athlete also successfully defended his 200m title, finishing in 19.52s. Besides winning the 100m and 200m events, Lyles grabbed a gold medal in the 4x100m relay race with teammates Christian Coleman, Fred Kerley, and Brandon Carnes. This made him the fourth sprinter to reach a hat-trick of gold medals at the World Championships after Usain Bolt and Maurice Greene.

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Noah Lyles on his competitor Fred Kerley

The athlete at Day 8 - World Athletics Championships Budapest 2023

Before Noah Lyles became the new 100m winner at the 2023 World Athletics Championships, it was Fred Kerley who had won the title last year. Kerley ran 9.76s in the semifinals of the event. It also got Kerley a place in the list of the fastest 100m runners in the world. Moreover, in the finals of the event, the athlete finished at 9.86s, winning the gold medal.

Kerley was looking forward to defending his title this year. However, he could not even make it to the finals. He finished third in the semifinals with a time of 10.02 seconds.

Noah Lyles became the new 100m world champion this year. When he was asked to speak on Kerley's ability to regain his title, he told Citus Mag:

"I think it has to be Fred coming out for revenge."

He added:

"I would expect nothing less from him. To be honest, like, if that was me, I would be saying the exact same thing - a fire igniting under the belly."