At last year’s Olympics, the lingering image of Noah Lyles after the 200m was this: Lyles out of breath, sprawled across the track before being helped onto a wheelchair and whisked away. It wasn’t the end anyone would’ve imagined for the then 3-time 200m world champion. Only later did he reveal that he had contracted Covid-19 just days before, keeping his positive test a secret to keep the dream of being the first man since Usain Bolt to win the sprint double. It’s a testament to Lyles’ resilience that he was able to huff and puff his way to the bronze medal, as Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo sprinted to gold. In the very event Lyles hadn’t lost in the previous 3 years. Now, just over a year on from that ignominious end, Noah Lyles has snatched redemption with two hands.

At the ongoing Tokyo World Championships, Lyles settled for bronze in the 100m, but the 200m was all his, as he finished in 19.52 to make history. Because this time he did match a Usain Bolt record, becoming the only other athlete to win the 200m world title a whopping four times. Not only that, but Lyles was able to dish out some revenge to Tebogo, who ended the race in fourth. He also managed to get ahead of his longtime American rival Kenny Bednarek, who came in second with a time of 19.58 seconds, continuing his streak of finishing as the runner-up in big competitions.

Contributing to Lyles’ win was small but smart change: he switched to shorter shorts. “I need to wear short shorts more,” joked Lyles in his post-race interview after flying to a world-leading 19.51s in the semis. And the short shorts made a return in the final, potentially helping him move better and cutting down on drag.

Lyles really nailed it with this victory, cementing his place as one of the all-time greats in sprinting. It shows how he can rise above challenges and deliver when it counts the most. He not only took back his spot at the top in the 200 meters but also showed that even tiny tweaks and a strong mindset can really change the game in elite athletics. But while the Americans are celebrating their win, it’s a real bummer for Lyles’ rival from Botswana.

Letsile Tebogo endures the opposite of what Noah Lyles has achieved in Tokyo

The 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo turned out to be quite a letdown for Letsile Tebogo. He faced a tough break with a DQ and just couldn’t manage to snag a medal in the event he was aiming for. His championships got off to a rough start when he was disqualified for a false start in the men’s 100m final, an event where he was a strong contender for the gold medal.

This was a tough hit since it took away his opportunity to race in one of the most awaited events of the meet. Tebogo showed great sportsmanship by deciding not to protest the decision. He mentioned, “I had to let the race go because the guys were in it and I didn’t want to delay into protesting against the officials. So I just had to let them be and then let them run their races, congratulate them and then see how going into the next one.”

He shifted his attention to the 200m, saying he had “nothing more to lose.” So, even though he made it to the final, he ended up in fourth place with a time of 19.65 seconds, not quite able to catch up to his competitors Noah Lyles and Kenny Bednarek. This meant that despite being the reigning Olympic champion, Tebogo left the world championships without an individual medal, a deeply frustrating outcome for the Botswanan sprinter after the high of his Paris 2024 victory.