American Noah Lyles, fresh with emotion after winning gold by .005 seconds in the men's 100m final at the 2024 Olympics, posted to X a powerful and inspirational message on how personal obstacles do not define you.
"I have Asthma, allergies, dyslexia, ADD, anxiety, and Depression," Lyles wrote. "But I will tell you that what you have does not define what you can become. Why Not You!"
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Shortly after the 100m race on Sunday, Lyles shared another personal matter he overcame to win gold: The recent loss of his high school track coach, Rashawn Jackson.
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"I remember when I was running on the back stretch and I was like, 'This one's for you, man', and I thought he was going to be here to see it," Lyles said, holding back tears.
"I know that he's watching because he believed that I was gonna be a 100 meter runner, just as much as I was going to be a 200 meter runner," Lyles added.
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Lyles won bronze in the 200m final in Tokyo.
Lyles' gold win on Sunday was so close, it did not seem clear that he had won until officials reviewed the footage and declared that he had edged out Jamaica's Kishane Thompson by five thousandths of a second, or .005 seconds.
Next, Lyles competes for the 200m in Paris and is scheduled to compete in the sixth heat for the event at 2:30 p.m. ET on Monday, Aug. 5.
If Lyles qualifies, he goes on to the semifinals, slated for Wednesday, Aug. 7 at 2:02 p.m. ET.
The men's 200m final is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 8 at 2:30 p.m. ET.
