"Watched him be a father to the fatherless"- Noah Lyles reminisces on impact of his late coach Rashawn Jackson after achieving glory at Paris Olympics

Noah Lyles has appreciated his late coach, Rashawn Jackson, who died before Lyles became the 100m Olympic champion. He shared that Jackson, his track coach from Alexandria City High School, was a father figure to all who needed a mentor.

Lyles won the 100m in 9.79s at the 2024 Paris Olympics and dedicated his win to his late track coach who died in July. After his race, the 100m world champion told reporters about remembering Jackson while running the backstretch and wishing him to be present.

"It's an amazing moment, I don't think it's completely sunk in to be honest. There's so many places that I have ties to, and my coach, Rashawn Jackson, he recently died. I remember when I was running on the back stretch and I was like, 'This one is for you man,'" Noah Lyles said tearing up.

In a recent interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer, Lyles hailed his former coach and said:

"I watched him be a father to the fatherless and be a mentor to the ones ready to give up. He was a man who fought his own demons but was ready to fight for others. He was a big inspiration for me and I will always be thankful for him."

Lyles and his brother Josephus entered the Alexandria City High School track team with the Olympics as the primary goal. The former recalled how Jackson asked them to first focus on districts and gradually increase the level.

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Noah Lyles dedicated his Olympic win to his coach and paired it with an emotional note

Noah Lyles after winning 100m at the Paris Games 2024: Day 9 - Source: Getty

In an X post after his Olympic campaign, Noah Lyles posted a picture of him holding his name tag and looking up at the sky. He dedicated his win to his late track coach, Rashawn Jackson, and wrote:

"Hey Coach Rashawn, that one was for you RIP"

In an interview with SportsCenter, the six-time World gold medalist said:

"To be honest, I'm kind of excited to honor my coach [Rashawn Jackson]. I lost my high school coach this year right after the Olympic trials, and it was a big moment. I mean as we look at this picture [his victory pose after the 100m win at the Paris Olympics] behind me, I remember thinking about when he actually, you know, this was basically our dream that we came up with together." [08:00 onwards]

Lyles recently received a grand welcome from Alexandria, where he toured around his alma mater and the city park in a red convertible.