"I always honor my bets" - Noah Lyles reveals pulling out Exodia card after qualifying for Paris Olympics was a dare from Chase Jackson

By Soumik Bhattacharya

Modified Aug 22, 2024 14:25 GMT

Three-time Olympic medalist, Noah Lyles recently shared the secret behind his ritual of showing off Yu-Gi-Oh cards before the start of his races. The 27-year-old even pulled out his Yu-Go-Oh trump cards during the US Olympic Track and Field Trials in June after he sealed his place for the Olympics.

Following his successful Paris Olympics campaign, Lyles opened up about the backstory that led to this ritual of showing the Yu-Gi-Oh Cards.

In a recent episode of "Everybody Wants To Be Us" podcast with Ben Gallaga, Lyles remarked that this practice started after American shot put thrower, Chase Ealey asked the Florida sprinter to show off the Exodia card before he took his mark during a race. Lyles said (at 46:46):

"It was actually a dare. I was doing a podcast with Chase Ealey, two-time World Champion in Shot Put and we are both anime fans and she was like 'Yeah you got to pull out Exodia before you run' and I'm like what? I was like if I manage to pull out Exodia then you have to do the Rock Lee weight drop, and she did."

He further added:

"So that means I had to. I always honor my bets and dares. I did it through all the 100m and I did it in one of the 200m, but I ended up buying a duel disk and walking with the duel disk."

Noah Lyles has been an immense fan of anime and manga series and his favorites among these series include Full Metal Alchemist and Cage of Eden. The 27-year-old is also reportedly a huge fan of the works of Akira Toriyama, the creator and writer of the famous Japanese anime series, Dragon Ball.

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Noah Lyles opens up about the sacrifices his mother made for his success

Noah Lyles at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games (Image via: Getty Images)

A very emotional scene unfolded at the Stade de France in the Paris Olympics 2024 after Noah Lyles clinched his first-ever Olympic gold medal. The 27-year-old ran straight toward his mother, Keisha Bishop to hug her.

A few days later after this emotional chapter at the Paris Olympics 2024, Lyles opened up about her mother's contribution to his life. During an exclusive interview with "TODAY", Lyles said,

"She sacrificed so much to make sure that we would be able to get that.”

Bishop backed Lyles and his brother, Josephus Lyles' growth as a track and field athlete during their junior days and also supported Noah Lyles immensely during his battle with asthma.