Days after winning the bronze medal in the men's 200m at the Paris Olympics, Noah Lyles announced that he is Covid-free. The American athlete, who was considered to be one of the top prospects for the gold in the 200m bowed down to Letsile Tebogo of Botswana who secured the Olympic title. Lyles was seen struggling after the race.
He was attended to by the medical staff and escorted in a wheelchair. USATF later released an official statement about Lyles' condition and said:
"After a thorough medical evaluation, Noah chose to compete tonight. We respect his decision and will continue to monitor his condition closely,” the statement read.
Noah Lyles later announced that he would be concluding his Olympic campaign and dropping out of the 4x100m relay. Two days later, the 27-year-old took to X to reveal that he was free from COVID-19 and shared a picture of the test.
Fans reacted to his announcement and expressed their thoughts on the same.
"You got bodied. Accept defeat and stop the gimmicks," wrote a fan.
"Nobody believed you had it bro," another fan chimed in.
"Always here to remind you to be humble so that even when you loose, you don't have to blame Covid.Lol 😂😂," another user wrote.
Some fans extended their support and expressed their relief at the update, writing:
"That is very fortunate. We want everyone on Team USA 🇺🇸 to return as healthy as they were when they got there," a fan wrote.
"Don't worry bout the covid bro, ignore that word. Media were trying to knock you down. Loved your spirit till u made it👍🏻,"a fan chimed in.
"Glad you are okay! What a valiant effort to get your Bronze Medal the other day," another fan tweeted.
Noah Lyles on competing in the men's 200m final
After winning the bronze medal in the men's 200m, Noah Lyles spoke about his decision to compete in the finals despite not feeling at his best. He said (as quoted by "Time"):
"I still wanted to run; they said it was still possible. So we just stayed away from everybody and just tried to take it round by round. And to be honest, I knew if I wanted to come out here and win, I had to give everything I had from the get-go. I didn't have any time to save energy," Lyles said.
Noah Lyles concluded his Paris Olympics campaign with two medals- one gold and one bronze, postponing his dream to win three Olympic gold medals to the next edition of the quadrennial Games.