Noah Lyles and Usain Bolt top speed comparisons

Noah Lyles vs Usain Bolt: Who has clocked higher top speed?

Modified Jun 14, 2024 22:10 GMT

While Noah Lyles has claimed several times over the recent months that he can break Usain Bolt's 200m world record, he hasn't been able to come close to the Jamaican’s top speed, neither in the 200m nor the 100m sprints.

Lyles may not be that far from breaking Usain Bolt's world record in the 200m sprints. The odds are in his favor, the stats, and the hype as well. It's a perfect build-up to the Paris Olympics 2024. He doesn't just want to break Bolt's 19.19s barrier, but the reigning world champion believes he can clock 19.10s.

While he is just 12-hundredths of a second behind the Jamaican legend in 200m timing, Lyles has clocked the top speed of 23.17mph in the 200m. He clocked the speed during the 2023 U. S Championships where he posted 19.31s to become the third fastest in history.

In the 100m sprints, Lyles has touched a top speed of 22.76mph while the world's fastest man has attained a top speed of 27.33mph. Bolt achieved the speed during a 100m event in 2009, at 67.13 meters into the race, where he finished in 9.76s.

However, when Bolt's top speed is calculated by dividing the 100m with his fastest timing in the discipline, 9.58s, it comes down to 23.35mph. Noah Lyles’ top speed has been calculated with the same formula.

Can Noah Lyles break the 200m world record? Usain Bolt answers

Noah Lyles had an impressive start to the 2024 season. He clocked personal best times of 6.44 and 6.43 seconds in the 60m sprints at the USATF Indoor Championships and World Indoor Championships 2024.

The impressive performances positively affected Lyles, and he claimed that he could run 19.10s in the 200m sprints to break Usain Bolt's world record.

When the Jamaican was asked about Lyles’ chance of winning the 100m and 200m Olympic gold medals in Paris and breaking his world record, Bolt claimed that it wouldn't be an easy affair for the world champion.

"It's not gonna be easy. I think Noah will feel like it's easy running both events. It was never easy. I've said it, I've always said it, it's not easy running back-to-back events and then going for the world record because your body runs out of energy", he told Citius Magzine.

However, he added that Noah Lyles had a chance of breaking his 19.19s record.

"But I think the possibility is there because he came close at the World Championships. I feel like if he corrects a few things- I won’t say – he could get better," he added.