What was Noah Lyles up to on June 27? Maybe, just maybe, he had his eyes glued to the Jamaican Championships. That was the day the men’s 100m final went down — and what a race it was. Kishane Thompson stole the spotlight, blazing to a 9.75s finish, grabbing the world lead and sliding into sixth on the all-time list. But right behind him? There was someone who chased him all the way to the line, clocking 9.83s — just 0.02 off his personal best. So, why are we bringing this up now? Well, things are starting to get interesting.
Back on June 27, Oblique Seville put on a gutsy performance. But here’s the thing — before the final even started, there were real doubts about whether he’d actually race. Seville was clearly in pain, dealing with a hamstring issue that had him moving cautiously. It looked bad enough that people weren’t sure he’d even make it to the line. Right before the race, he was even seen in tears in the blocks. Kishane Thompson noticed that and went over to console him.
Still, Seville didn’t back down. Despite everything, the 24-year-old showed up, pushed through the pain, and chased Thompson all the way to the finish, taking second place. Now, nearly three weeks later, that same Seville is gearing up to face Noah Lyles this weekend. Commendable? An American Olympic legend certainly thinks so.
On the Ready Set Go podcast, Justin Gatlin didn’t hold back when talking about Oblique Seville’s gutsy run at the Jamaican Championships. The Olympic champ was all praise, saying, “He [Oblique] ran his race. He came out with second place. He ran 9:83. I mean, that was good for him. I’m glad he’s able to compose himself, get himself back together, calm his body down, and go out there and run one of the fastest times of the season.”
And let’s not forget — Seville did all that while dealing with brutal pain in his leg. Plus, on the same day, he clocked 9.84 in the semis! That’s some serious heart right there. Now, with Noah Lyles lining up alongside Seville this weekend, the question is — any special message from Gatlin before the showdown?
Paris 2024 Olympics – Athletics – Men’s 100m Semi-Final 1 – Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France – August 04, 2024. Oblique Seville of Jamaica, Louie Hinchliffe of Britain and Noah Lyles of United States cross the finish line after heat 1. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier
The 2004 Olympic champ didn’t exactly drop any bold predictions for the London Diamond League, but Gatlin did paint a clear picture of Oblique’s grit. He even threw it back to his own racing days, saying, “If that happened in our generation, we’d have been like, ‘Hey, starter, wrap this thing up, man. We gotta go.’ Oblique was able to control his cramps. They got into starting blocks.”
But Seville? He held it together. Now, here we are — Seville’s gearing up for his big clash with Noah Lyles. And don’t forget, last year, he beat Noah twice. No one else managed that against the Olympic champ. This season? Noah’s been untouchable so far. But hey, the season’s not over — and a lot can still happen.
Noah Lyles has had something with the London Diamond League
On Friday (July 11), Noah Lyles made it look easy against Letsile Tebogo. This was his first 200m since losing to the Botswana star in the Olympic final — but this time, there was no revenge plot, just pure dominance. Lyles crushed the curve, pulled away down the straight, and crossed the line in 19.88 seconds (-0.8 m/s). Tebogo? He was 0.09 seconds behind. So yeah, Noah reminded everyone who really owns the 200m.
But here’s the real twist — this weekend, the 27-year-old is stepping back into the men’s 100m, his first since winning Olympic gold in Paris. After that kind of break, could a little rust show up? Maybe. Maybe not.
Then again, let’s not forget — Noah entered the same contest last year before Paris. Jumped straight into a stacked field at the London Diamond League, went up against Akani Simbine, Tebogo, Yohan Blake — and still won it in 9.81 seconds. So, if history’s any clue, the gap might not matter much.
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