While there have been many controversies throughout this year’s Olympic Games, there was one rallying moment for Team USA on Wednesday — the U.S. 100-meter champion won the bronze medal in the men’s 200-meter race despite being diagnosed with COVID.
Noah Lyles, who has been proclaimed by many to be the fastest man in the world, put his skills on full display during the Wednesday 200-meter race in Paris. Despite testing positive for COVID on Tuesday morning, he managed to finish in third place the following day before being taken off the field in a wheelchair.
After his bronze medal in the 200m, US Track and Field have confirmed Noah Lyles has Covid.#BBCOlympics #Olympics #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/X878I5dPW9
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) August 8, 2024
Reports indicate that Lyles kept the COVID diagnosis private to prevent others from realizing he was sick before the race, though medical staff and his mother reportedly knew of the diagnosis.
“Noah Lyles confirmed he tested positive for COVID at 5am Tuesday morning Paris time,” ESPN’s Coley Harvey wrote in a post on X. “He ‘kept this close to the vest.’ Didn’t want competitors to know he was sick. His mom, medical staff knew he had it. He quarantined at a hotel the last few nights. He was going to run regardless.”
Noah Lyles confirmed he tested positive for COVID at 5am Tuesday morning Paris time. He “kept this close to the vest.” Didn’t want competitors to know he was sick. His mom, medical staff knew he had it. He quarantined at a hotel the last few nights. He was going to run regardless pic.twitter.com/ekIGhxmPvp
— Coley Harvey (@ColeyHarvey) August 8, 2024
The Olympian seemed to be exhausted after the race concluded, and was photographed laying on the ground surrounded by medical staff.
Noah Lyles was gassed after the 200M final
Medical team came over to check on him after the race 🙏 pic.twitter.com/uVpjQ1y7Me
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) August 8, 2024
The gold medal in the 200-meter race went to Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo, marking the first-ever gold medal won by Botswana in any sport. Lyles came in third with a 19.70, just behind another member of Team USA, Kenny Bednarek, who won silver.
His COVID diagnosis was not the only controversy during the 200-meter race, as he was also given a yellow card for violating Technical Rule 7.1, which constitutes “improper conduct” — though it has not been reported what the reason behind the disciplinary action was.
The bronze medal was not the only victory for Lyle, as he won the gold medal in last week’s 100-meter race — narrowly beating Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson. Lyle is scheduled to compete in one more Olympic event — the 4×100-meter relay — though it is unclear whether he will be allowed to compete after he did not take part in the qualification event. Lyle told reporters after the 200-meter race that he is unsure about his participation in the next event, though he said that he was confident that his team could win without him.
Noah Lyles provides an update on his condition after the 200m final. #ParisOlympics
📺 NBC & Peacock pic.twitter.com/9Qs1vcBycf
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 8, 2024
