The tension that boiled over at the U.S. Championships has not vanished. What began as a staredown and shove in Eugene, with Kenny Bednarek calling Noah Lyles “unsportsmanlike s–t,” has followed the pair onto the Diamond League circuit. Their rivalry, already volatile, now carries fresh dimensions after the men’s 100 meters in Silesia delivered a result that altered the conversation.

In that U.S. 200m final, Lyles cut across the line in 19.63 seconds, staring down Bednarek as he edged him by four-hundredths of a second. Bednarek, unwilling to let the gesture pass, shoved his compatriot and later dismissed the behavior as “unsportsmanlike…, and I don’t deal with that.” The two had exchanged terse words on live television, with Bednarek warning, “Don’t do that to me. I don’t do any of that stuff. It’s not good character right there.” What might have ended there instead continued into Poland, where their feud found a new stage in the 100 meters.

The Silesia meeting brought an Olympic rematch. This time, Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson surged ahead to equal the 9.87 meet record, leaning at the line just before Lyles, who finished in a season’s best of 9.90. Bednarek, once again trailing his rival, placed third in 9.96, a hair’s width in front of Christian Coleman and Trayvon Bromell. For Lyles, the loss to Thompson was a reminder of the challenge ahead at the World Championships. For Bednarek, it was another defeat at the hands of a teammate he had clashed with only weeks earlier.

Bednarek acknowledged the spectacle their conflict created. “Well, I mean, I feel like, you know, track and field, you know, a lot of people win and then there’s no not much excitement, I guess,” Bednarek said after the Silesia race.

Kung Fu Kenny further added, “So for like the average fan or people that are tuning in, it was something, you know, new. You saw some fire, you know, both our eyes because, you know, we’re competitors and we want to win. And, I think, you know, it’s just something different, like, ‘Oh, like you didn’t you didn’t know what was going on.’ We like, ‘Okay, we’re here for it.’ Blah, blah, blah. But yeah, it it was something small, but then ended up being a bigger deal than it really was. But like I said, everything is sorted.”

Yet the results suggest nothing is truly settled. Lyles has maintained his edge over Bednarek, despite the friction between them, but he now faces a new obstacle in Thompson. The Diamond League confirmed what the U.S. Championships only hinted at: these races are no longer confined to American rivalries. With Tokyo approaching, the spotlight remains not only on Lyles and Bednarek, but also on the Jamaican who has forced his way into the narrative. Despite the almost brawl-like situation between NoJo and Kung Fu Kenny, Bednarek recently had a different take on the situation.

The Rivalry Reignites With Fiery 100m Clash in Silesia, Just as Bednarek Promised

Kenny Bednarek’s promise that “when it comes to 100 and 200, that rivalry… it’s real” proved more than a passing remark when he and Noah Lyles returned to the track in Silesia. What began with a glance and a shove at the U.S. Championships found its sequel in Poland, where both men were forced to measure themselves not only against Kishane Thompson but also against one another. The outcome was decided in hundredths of a second, and the duel carried the edge of unfinished business.

Lyles, running 9.90, slipped just behind Thompson’s winning 9.87, with Bednarek only a stride further back in 9.96. The result reaffirmed the Jamaican’s current command of the distance, yet it also sharpened the tension between the Americans. Bednarek had told CNN that after their heated exchange in Eugene, the two sat down for an “hour-long conversation” and resolved to move forward with respect. The words carried sincerity, but in competition, civility has its limits. Each man still shadows the other’s performance, waiting for the smallest weakness to appear.

The narrow margins in Silesia ensured that their next encounter will not be viewed simply as a race but as another chapter in a rivalry that refuses to settle. Bednarek’s caution to “expect fireworks” did not overstate the case. The figures on the clock told a story of fractions, but the true weight of the evening was in how it demonstrated that a handshake cannot erase what ambition leaves behind. For the moment, Thompson held the advantage, yet it is the unresolved tension between Noah Lyles and Bednarek that lingers most vividly.