Noah Lyles and Obilque Seville’s rivalry just keeps getting better. Seville first got the better of Lyles at the 2024 Racers Grand Prix in Kingston, running a world-leading 9.82 to Lyles’ 9.85. This year too, the Jamaican added key Diamond League wins in London (9.86) and Lausanne (9.87 in heavy rain). In both the meets, Lyles finished second with 10 in London and 10.02 in Lausanne. However, at the Tokyo World Championships, the American flipped the script, as he won the 100m heat in 9.95s, beating Ackeem Blake, who ran 10.07s, and Terrence Jones in 10.16s. Following his win, Lyles shared what went wrong with Seville.

After the race, the American was asked about Oblique Seville, to which he replied, “Yeah, I knew that was gonna happen. That man was panicking in the back. Yeah. But hey, he’s a gamer, so hopefully he’ll get it back, and then we’ll have a great final. Alright, we’ll see you back at it soon.”

He couldn’t recover from a sluggish start. The young gun clocked 9.93s, finishing behind Gift Leotlel, who stormed to a career best of 9.87s for the win, and Nigeria’s Kanyinsola Ajayi, who also set a PB of 9.88s. Seville’s slow reaction cost him dearly in a race, and Noah Lyles saw it coming. Seville’s form is not only a concern for the Jamaican fans but also for sprinting legends as well, because Usain Bolt is counting on him.

In a Puma event in Tokyo on September 10th, Bolt said, “Kishane and Oblique have already shown they are in shape. They should be 1-2 because they have proved throughout the season that they are on top and are running fast. Now it’s just about one of them executing, and it should be fine. I’m very confident that they can get it done.” Well, we sure do hope Seville can stand up to Bolt’s words and give Noah Lyles a good finale. After all, he is not demotivated after the race.

Oblique Seville’s reaction to his race

A tweet by Noel Francis, a freelance Track & field writer for World Athletics, reported Seville’s statement. It read, “I’ve had a number of races that I’ve come from behind. As an athlete, you will not always get the perfect start; you will have moments when you have to recover from a bad one, and I’ve learned my lesson both ways, so I know what to do.” The 24-year-old is a fighter, and he has shown it.

The Jamaican overcame a pre-race injury scare at the Jamaican Championships. At first, he appeared to be limping, and then finished second in the men’s 100m with a season-best 9.83s, behind Kishane Thompson’s 9.75s. After the heats in the World Championships, he told Jamaican Observer, “Things happen, but everything is going to be fine in the semifinals and finals. It’s not every race where the start will be perfect; sometimes you’ve got to recover from it, and I’ve learned my lesson both ways.” But what could be the reason for such a slow start? That is where it gets concerning.

American sports commentator, Lewis Johnson got a chance to talk to him in the Mixed zone, and he asked, “But why the slow reaction?“. Johnson said, “And he said he’s got some personal issues. I asked him what? He said he wouldn’t elaborate, but everything was okay.” Well, we sure do hope everything is okay with the young star, and the nervousness before the heats was just pre-race anxiety. He is a big hope for a silver, maybe even Gold in Tokyo. What do you think?