Paris Olympics: Noah Lyles reaches 200m final, moves one step closer to equalling Usain Bolt

SAINT-DENIS, France — Noah Lyles is one step closer to completing the Olympic sprint double and becoming the first man since Usain Bolt.

The American settled for second place in his men’s 200-meter semifinal on Wednesday night, not what he wanted but still good enough to advance to Thursday’s highly anticipated final. Lyles crossed the finish line in 20.08 seconds, 12 hundredths of a second behind Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo.

So far, Lyles is following a similar pattern in the 200 as he did in the 100. He also finished second in both heats of the 100 before coming out on top when it mattered.

On Sunday night, on the striking purple track of the Stade de France, Lyles backed up his big words and cemented his claim to the title of world’s fastest man. He won the closest ever men’s 100m at the Olympics with a personal best of 9.784 seconds, beating Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson by five thousandths of a second.

It would be a surprise if the 200m final were this exciting.

Lyles is nearly unbeatable in his favorite race because the event minimizes the impact of his slow starts and maximizes the qualities that make him special. He maintains his speed as well as any sprinter since Bolt, which allows him to typically swallow everyone in front of him as he rounds the corner and sprints toward the finish line.

Besides Tebogo, Lyles’ biggest challengers in the 200 final on Thursday night could be his fellow countrymen. Kenny Bednarek, the 2021 Olympic silver medalist in the 200, won the first semifinal on Wednesday night in 20.0 seconds. Erriyon Knighton, still only 20, has won world championship medals in the 200 for the past two years. He won his heat in 20.09.

When asked earlier this week how confident he felt about winning the men’s 200 meters, Lyles grinned and said, “Pretty confident, I can’t lie.”

Lyles added: “When I come off the tee, they’re all going to be depressed.”