Noah Lyles is the undisputed individual sprint king of 2023 after he breezed to victory in the 200m final at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, on Friday (25 August).
His stated dream of breaking Usain Bolt’s track world record may not quite have come true but Lyles retained his 200m crown from last year to add to the 100m title he won last Sunday.
The 26-year-old had a very fast start and was just ahead of teammate and one of his fiercest 200m challengers, Erriyon Knighton, at the bend.
But on the back straight, Lyles began to pull away, crossing the line with a comfortable margin to win in 19.51 seconds. Knighton took silver in 19.75, an upgrade from the bronze he won last year, as the two Americans immediately embraced to celebrate their one-two finish.
Afterwards, Lyles lifted two fingers up to the crowd and TV cameras – whether that was to signify his sprint double, or his back-to-back wins in the event, it was a somewhat understated celebration from a man who could still yet win a third gold in Budapest in the 4x100m relay.
There was another historic medal for Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo, who finished third in 19.81. Less than a week after winning his continent’s first individual men’s sprint medal at a World Championships, he now has two.
Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes finished fourth outside the medals, not adding to his 100m bronze from Sunday, while Andre de Grasse is likely to leave Budapest without a medal after finishing sixth – the Canadian men’x 4x100m relay team has not qualified for the final, and de Grasse only qualified for the 200m individually.
Kenny Bednarek, last year’s silver medallist, was fifth.