MAYBE IT WAS an act, maybe not. But Noah Lyles entered the meet playing the role of the champion-to-be, stating as much in a press conference after defending champion Fred Kerley remarked, “If Noah’s going to run 9.65, then I’m running faster.”
Lyles retorted, “That’s what they all say till they get beat.”
Yet when the finalists lined up, Kerley didn’t have a lane. He had finished 3rd in his semi in 10.02, missing the Big Dance by a mere 0.01.
There were few major casualties in the heats, most notably U.S. champion Cravont Charleston, whose 10.18 missed advancing by 0.01. The semis were uniformly fast. A showboating Lyles took the first in 9.87, just a hundredth off his PR. Japan’s Abdul Hakim Sani Brown followed in 9.97 and Ferdinand Omanyala got the last time qualifier in 10.01. Olympic champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs finished 5th in 10.05.
Semi II also produced three finalists, Christian Coleman (9.88) leading Zharnel Hughes (9.93) and Jamaican Ryiem Forde (9.95); South African Akani Simbine false-started. The third saw the demise of Kerley, who placed 3rd behind Oblique Seville (9.90) and Botswana’s World Junior champion Letsile Tebogo (9.98).
Kerley was brusque and to the point as he passed through the mixed zone: “I f’ed up.” His absence from the final still left Lyles to face a field full of legit contenders. Three had PRs faster than his 9.86: 4-time finalist Coleman at 9.76 in lane 4, African champion Omanyala at 9.77 in lane 9, and ’22 bronze medalist Zharnel Hughes at 9.83 in lane 5. Experienced eyes also watched Seville (7), who had PRed in his heat at 9.86, and Tebogo (3).
In lane 6, Lyles seemed ready. The wind, completely still. At the gun, he got out well, though not as fast as Coleman. Indeed, the ’19 champion led for the first third of the race before he was tagged by Tebogo and Lyles. As the phalanx of contenders approached the final meters, only Lyles managed to edge ahead. He hit the line in an =WL PR 9.83, perhaps a foot ahead of his pursuers.
They came in a rush, the next three all clocking 9.88s. For silver medalist Tebogo, it was a national record (9.873); Hughes got bronze (9.874) — and some couldn’t help but notice WA head Seb Coe celebrating by pumping his fist. Left off the podium by just 0.003 was Seville. Coleman came across 5th in 9.92.
“I knew what I had to do,” said Lyles. “I came here for three golds, ticked off one, others are coming. The 100m was the hardest one.
“Coleman always has a fast start. He had it the whole season, he was even getting better and better. I expected him to do what he does and if he was the only one in front of me, it would be my race. I needed to make sure that I was accelerating when I was at 60m.”
The prospect of more bullion awaits Lyles, who has the 200 and most probably the 4×1 still on his dance card. The last athlete to pull off that triple? Usain Bolt in ’15.
MEN’S 100 RESULTS
FINAL (August 20; wind 0.0)
1. Noah Lyles (US) 9.83 PR (AL, =WL) (=7, x A);
2. Letsile Tebogo (Bot) 9.88 NR (9.873);
3. Zharnel Hughes (GB) 9.88 (9.874);
4. Oblique Seville (Jam) 9.88 (9.877);
5. Christian Coleman (US) 9.92;
6. Abdul Hakim Sani Brown (Jpn) 10.04;
7. Ferdinand Omanyala (Ken) 10.07;
8. Ryiem Forde (Jam) 10.08.
(lanes: 2. Forde; 3. Tebogo; 4. Coleman; 5. Hughes; 6. Lyles; 7. Seville; 8. Sani Brown; 9. Omanyala)
(reaction times: 0.105 Hughes, 0.129 Tebogo, 0.137 Coleman, 0.145 Lyles, 0.148 Seville, 0.152 Omanyala, 0.177 Sani Brown, 0.188 Forde)
(best-ever mark-for-place: =4)
QUALIFYING ROUND (August 19)
I(0.0)–1. Emanuel Archibald (Guy) 10.27; 2. Bence Boros (Hun) 10.70; 3. Chan Kin Wa (MAC) 10.79; 4. Terrone Webster (AIA) 11.03; 5. Timur Isakov (Kir) 11.22 PR; 6. Karalo Hepoiteloto Maibuca (Tuv) 11.55; 7. Tauro Tiaon (Kyr) 12.00 PR.
II(0.2)–1. Muhd Azeem Fahmi (Mas) 10.24; 2. Brandon Jones (Blz) 10.94; 3. Camara Seco (GBi) 11.04; 4. Aayush Kunwar (Nep) 11.07; 5. Winzar Kakiouea (NRU) 11.23 PR; 6. Kylian Vatrican (Mon) 11.44.
III(-0.8)–1. Imran Rahman (Ban) 10.50; 2. Onisio Pereia (Moz) 10.89; 3. Alisher Sadulayev (Tkm) 10.90; 4. Melique Garcia (Hon) 10.96; 5. Melino Tafuna (TGA) 11.14 PR; 6. Manuihei Teaha (PYF) 11.66 PR; 7. Ty’ree Langidrik (MHL) 11.78 PR;… dnf—Said Gilani (Afg).
IV(-0.3)–1. Ebrahima Camara (Gam) 10.32; 2. Joseph Green (Gum) 10.84 PR; 3. Favoris Muzrapov (Tjk) 10.86; 4. Hassan Nujoom (MDV) 11.30; 5. Nathan Crumpton (AmS) 11.32; 6. James Fiti Scott (Mic) 11.69.
HEATS (August 19)
I(0.0)–1. Hughes 10.00; 2. Forde 10.01; 3. Seye Ogunlewe (Ngr) 10.07; 4. Dominik Kopeć (Pol) 10.12; 5. Hassan Taftian (Irn) 10.17; 6. Tiaan Whelpton (NZ) 10.26; 7. Muzrapov 10.99; 8. Arthur Gue Cissé (CI) 11.58.
II(-0.6)–1. Lyles 9.95; 2. Omanyala 9.97; 3. Usheoritse Itsekiri (Ngr) 10.17; 4. Samuele Ceccarelli (Ita) 10.26; 5. Jerome Blake (Can) 10.29; 6. Emmanuel Eseme (Cam) 10.41; 7. Jake Doran (Aus) 10.48; 8. Wa 10.83.
III(0.0)–1. Raphael Bouju (Neth) 10.09; 2. Eugene Amo-Dadzie (GB) 10.10; 3. Emmanuel Matadi (Lbr) 10.13; 4. Benji Richardson (SA) 10.17; 5. Cravont Charleston (US) 10.18; 6. Felipe Bardi (Bra) 10.25; 7. Ján Volko (Svk) 10.25; 8. Pereia 11.09.
IV(-0.4)–1. Tebogo 10.11; 2. Rohan Browning (Aus) 10.11; 3. Reece Prescod (GB) 10.14; 4. Shaun Maswanganyi (SA) 10.21; 5. Ryuichiro Sakai (Jpn) 10.22; 6. Cejhae Greene (Ant) 10.23; 7. Fahmi 10.26; 8. Boros 10.70.
V(0.0)–1. Seville 9.86 =PR; 2. Fred Kerley (US) 9.99; 3. Henrik Larsson (Swe) 10.16; 4. Mouhamadou Fall (Fra) 10.19; 5. Camara 10.20; 6. Paulo André de Oliveira (Bra) 10.25; 7. B. Jones 10.95;… fs—Favour Ashe (Ngr).
VI(-0.4)–1. Sani Brown 10.07; 2. Rohan Watson (Jam) 10.11; 3. Lamont Marcell Jacobs (Ita) 10.15; 4. Brendon Rodney (Can) 10.16; 5. Rikkoi Brathwaite (BVI) 10.18; 6. Terrence Jones (Bah) 10.32; 7. Rahman 10.41; 8. Ronal Longa (Col) 11.31.
VII(-0.1)–1. Akani Simbine (SA) 9.97; 2. Coleman 9.98; 3. Hiroki Yanagita (Jpn) 10.20; 3. Archibald 10.20; 5. Julian Wagner (Ger) 10.31; 6. Erik Felipe Cardoso (Bra) 10.36; 7. Markus Fuchs (Aut) 10.43; 8. Green 10.91 PR.
SEMIS (August 20)
I(0.3)–1. Lyles 9.87; 2. Sani Brown 9.97 =PR; 3. Omanyala 10.01; 4. Amo-Dadzie 10.03; 5. Jacobs 10.05; 6. Watson 10.07; 7. Kopeć 10.15; 8. Itsekiri 10.19.
II(0.0)–1. Coleman 9.88; 2. Hughes 9.93; 3. Forde 9.95 PR; 4. Matadi 10.04; 5. Ogunlewe 10.12; 6. Archibald 10.13 PR; 7. Yanagita 10.14;… fs—Simbine.
III(-0.3)–1. Seville 9.90; 2. Tebogo 9.98; 3. Kerley 10.02; 4. Browning 10.11; 5. Bouju 10.20; 6. Larsson 10.20; 7. Rodney 10.25; 8. Prescod 10.26.
