Noah Lyles suffers rare 200m defeat after pulling up at US Championships
Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles suffered a rare 200m defeat after pulling up with a hamstring cramp during the US National Championship final in New York.
The 29-year-old was comfortably leading the race before stopping abruptly down the home straight at Icahn Stadium.
Audible gasps echoed from the crowd as the American sprinter grabbed his left leg and limped across the finish line in 50.88 seconds.
College athlete Garrett Kaalund capitalised on the incident to win the national title with a time of 20.04 seconds.
‘Just a cramp’ halts dominant run
This marked only a fourth defeat over the distance for the reigning world champion since he began asserting his dominance in 2018.
Two of those previous losses occurred in the finals of the last two Olympic Games, where he ultimately settled for bronze.
However, the Florida native was quick to alleviate any serious injury fears when speaking to reporters immediately after the race.
“I just felt a grabbing sensation and I’m like, ‘Yeah, this is the time to stop, there’s no reason to keep pushing that’,” said Lyles.
“So I just decided to cut it off. To be honest, it’s just a cramp.”
“I just need to get stretched out and I’ve got some electrolytes here, just gonna chug them down. I’ll be good.”
Sprint workload takes its toll
The sprinter had already demonstrated his exceptional form earlier in the weekend by dominating the shorter distance.
He clocked an extraordinary world-leading time of 9.79 seconds to win the 100m final on Friday evening.
That victory followed an even faster wind-assisted run of 9.76 seconds during his semi-final heat.
He later conceded that such intense physical exertion may have compromised his body for the longer event.
“Running two 9.7s in one day is kind of crazy, and I think I underestimated how fast that really was when trying to come back,” he added.
“This does show me what it takes to keep going and kind of puts a perspective on how kind of great Usain Bolt was.”
Jefferson-Wooden cruises to women’s title
In the women’s 200m final, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden secured her second consecutive national title in commanding fashion.
The reigning world champion crossed the line in a season-best time of 21.69 seconds.
Her main Olympic rival, Gabby Thomas, opted out of competing at the New York event.
Attention now turns to the newly introduced Ultimate Championships, where a substantial prize pot will attract a star-studded field.
“I feel like with women’s sprints today it’s like that every single time we line up,” Jefferson-Wooden stated.
“I watch their races. They watch mine.”
“These next few years are going to be interesting to see.”