"I don't want to half-a*s it"- Noah Lyles makes his feelings known about pursuing another event amid the ongoing Indoor season

Noah Lyles is one of the best 200m sprinters of all time, but he has never shied away from showing his enthusiasm for the 400m. Recently, the American made his feelings known about competing in the distance, amidst the ongoing indoor season.

Lyles first expressed his interest in the 400m distance in late 2023, when he claimed he wanted to win four gold medals - 100m, 200m, 4x100m relay, and 4x400m relay - at the Paris Olympics. While the sprinter didn't accomplish the feat, many fans have been curious to see him take on the 400m distance.

In a recent clipping of the ‘Beyond the Records’ podcast shared on Instagram, Vernon Norwood, a two-time Olympic and four-time World Champion in the 4x400m relay, encouraged Lyles to compete in the longer distance, saying:

“I want to see you do a 400m one day.”

Lyles quickly replied:

“It will come. One day.”

Norwood continued encouraging Lyles to compete in the 400m at the 2025 USA National Championships.

“You want to try something new at USA’s (USA National Championships)? Because you can do the first round, everybody in the first round will be chilling, so you can go out there and blast the first round, open their minds,” he said.

Lyles agreed, saying:

“It does provide a very nice slot.”

Norwood went on to question if Lyles intended to compete in the 400m on the big stages, asking:

“Look, because you want to, at some point, at the World Championships or Olympic Games, you want to run the 4x400m, right?”

Noah Lyles replied in the affirmative, but stated that he wouldn't want to ‘half-a*s’ the event.

“Yeah, and the thing is, I don't want to half-a*s it. Like when I do commit to the 400m, I don't want to half-a*s it," he said.

Noah Lyles kicks off 2025 with back-to-back wins

Lyles at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix (Image Source: Getty)

For Noah Lyles, 2024 brought an incredible season, as he stormed to gold in the 100m at the Paris Olympics, while clinching bronze in the 200 distance. Now, the American has gotten off the new year to an electric start.

He made his season debut at the RADD Sports College Invitational and Multi-Event in Florida, where he clinched gold in the 60m with a time of 6.62 seconds. Lyles followed this up with an appearance at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, where he clocked a time of 6.55s to claim gold in the 60m sprint in a dominant fashion.

After the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, Noah Lyles revealed that he was forgoing the remainder of the indoor season to turn his focus to the 2025 World Championships, where he will arrive as the defending champion in the 100 and 200m events.