The "World's Fastest Man" will have an unexpectedly quick exit from the Paris Olympics.
Just hours after finishing third in the 200m final, considered to be his strongest event, Noah Lyles said that he seems to have run his last race in these Games. It also comes after his mother shared with NBC Olympics that Lyles had tested positive for COVID.
"I believe this will be the end of my 2024 Olympics. it is not the Olympic I dreamed of but it has left me with so much Joy in my heart. I hope everyone enjoyed the show," Lyles wrote in an Instagram post. "Whether you were rooting for me or against me, you have to admit you watched, didn't you? 😉 See you next time."
Lyles was next scheduled to compete in the men' 4x100m relay final on Friday, but it appears he will not be a part of that foursome.
It's been an eventful five days for Lyles. He came into the Olympics talking a big game, and he delivered right off the bat, winning the men's 100m final Sunday evening.
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Lyles was the favorite to win the 200m race as well, as he is considered the best in the world in it, but could not deliver another gold, instead finishing third with a time of 19.70 seconds. That was behind Botswana's Letsile Tebogo, who took the gold with a time of 19.46 seconds, and teammate Kenneth Bednarek's time of 19.62 seconds, which was good for second.
But soon after the race was finished, his mother said he had tested positive for COVID earlier in the week. Lyles needed medical attention after the race, but it wasn't clear what the issue was or if it was related to his COVID diagnosis. Commentators said Lyles was seen taken off from the track in a wheelchair by medical personnel after the race.
"As we saw Noah Lyles being taken off there in a wheelchair, I ran down underneath the stadium to try to find where he was. I ran into his mom, Keisha Caine Bishop, who was distraught trying to find him as well. We found Noah Lyles in medical there being tended to," NBC Olympics' commentator Lewis Johnson said.
The mother confirmed the diagnosis from two days ago, but Lyles opted to run anyway. He said he never considered not running in the race.
"Yeah, I woke up early about 5 a.m. on Tuesday morning and I just was feeling really horrible," Lyles said. "I knew it was more than just being sore from the 100. You know, woke up the doctors and we tested and unfortunately, it came up that I was positive for COVID. My first thought was not to panic...And we just took it day by day, trying to hydrate as much, quarantined off. And I'd definitely say it's taken it's toll for sure, but I've never been more proud of myself."
It's the second straight Olympics the virus has played a major role in Lyles' trip to the Games. He also won the bronze in the Tokyo Olympics, and he has said the empty stands and a year delay before the Games led to depression that he said hampered his performance and inspired his road to Paris.
