Noah Lyles issues clarification for his absence from the Diamond Leagues after winning two medals at the Paris Olympics 

By Adityan Pillai

Modified Sep 09, 2024 17:17 GMT

Noah Lyles issued a clarification for his absence from the Diamond Leagues series after the Paris Olympics. The 100m Olympic champion revealed that he had decided to end his season post-COVID concerns after winning two medals at the Paris Olympics.

Noah Lyles won his first Olympic gold medal at the Paris Olympics in the men's 100m in a photo finish with Jamaican athlete Kishane Thompson. He then marched on to his pet event, the 200m, where he finished third after clocking 19.70s. The USATF later revealed that Lyles tested positive for COVID-19 but still opted to compete in the finals of the men's 200m

The American athlete then decided to opt out of the 4x100m relay and conclude his Paris Olympics campaign. After the Paris Olympics his fellow athletes, Letsile Tebogo, Kenny Bednarek, Fred Kerley, and others made back-to-back appearances in the Diamond Leagues whereas Lyles on the other hand opted out of the event.

His absence led to fans questioning his plans for the rest of the 2024 season. Lyles arrived at the US Open to witness the women's singles final and spoke about his absence from the Diamond League events after the Paris Olympics.

" No I ended my season. We decided that after the COVID situation, we are just going to call it there and I didn't want to keep pushing plus and I wouldn't have time to come out here and enjoy the gold medal tour as I call it," he said. (0:57)

Noah Lyles on ending his Paris Olympic campaign after the 200m

Noah Lyles during the 2024 Summer Olympics - Day 13 - Source: Getty

Noah Lyles ended his Paris Olympics campaign after finishing third in the men's 200m. He opted out of the men's 4x100m relay and went on to congratulate Letsile Tebogo for his incredible victory as well as fans for their unwavering support throughout the Olympic games.

"First I want to thank God for getting me through this entire Olympics! Second I want to congratulate @tebogo_letsile_ , @kenny_bednarek and everyone else on an amazing Olympic 200m final. Finally I want to thank everyone for the supportive messages. I believe this will be the end of my 2024 Olympics," he wrote.

"It is not the Olympic I dreamed of but it has left me with so much Joy in my heart. I hope everyone enjoyed the show. Whether you were rooting for me or against me, you have to admit you watched, didn’t you? 😉 See you next time," he added.

Lyles' dream of winning three Olympic Gold medals and matching the legendary athlete Usain Bolt continues until the next edition of the quadrennial games.