"Some people are just not going to like you" - Noah Lyles reveals the harsh truth of being a public figure in the track and field world

Noah Lyles accepted that not everybody will like who he is or what he does. Ahead of the Paris Olympics and days after going on and off with arch-rival Fred Kerley, Lyles came to terms with the expectations the media has from famous athletes.

Noah Lyles, the 200m Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist, won the sprint treble at the 2023 World Championships. His 200m feat placed him above legendary athletes Michael Johnson and Calvin Smith, and right behind No.1 Usain Bolt in the world standings.

Noah Lyles commenced his 2024 outdoor season with the Tom Jones Memorial, where he edged out rivals for the 100m gold. He repeated his outdoor winning stride to win in the Bermuda Grand Prix, besides earning 60m golds this season.

Exuding confidence like no other has brought Noah Lyles to the center of attention. In the recent Journey to Gold Zone podcast of USA Track & Field, the 26-year-old three-peat icon graced the hot seat with Erik Kynard.

When asked about his way of navigating through social media intensity alongside the track, Lyles settled with the truth that everybody will not value his emotions.

"I'm sometimes you know your emotions just get in the way and you're like oh shoot let me get into it and but yeah I've said some things that I wish I could elaborate on but then I also remember that sometimes people are just going to hear what they want to hear. Yeah, oh for sure some people are just not going to like you and you got to accept that."

Controversies stemmed from his 4x400m relay stint at the World Indoors Championships. Fred Kerley, the 400m and 4x400m specialist lashed out at USATF for playing favoritism, not considering him for the relay team. In response, Lyles had told LetsRun.com:

"I mean, he could be here, but he ain’t. So be mad at that. Come on out here.”

This garnered upsetting comments from social media fans. Noah Lyles told Olympics.com in 2023 about his aim to win four golds, sure to "take a crack at" the 4x400m relay to increase his medal count.

Noah Lyles takes pride in Team USA after World Athletics Relays

The 4x100m relay team of the US flew to victory at the World Athletics Relays. In a world-leading time of 37.40s, the team, especially Lyles, celebrated the victory. He took to his Instagram and tagged fellow athlete Kenny Bednarek to give a glimpse of their performance.

""Who gonna STOP us!"

Over the weekend, Lyles will face off against his brother Josephus at the UA/Lyles Foundation Invitational after competing at Adidas Atlanta City Games.