Noah Lyles receives medical attention, leaves 200-meter final in wheelchair after upset

The talk of the Olympics in recent days has been about Noah Lyles and his quest to repeat Carl Lewis‘ 1984 feat of winning both the 100- and 200-meter dashes, but a stunning upset ended those notions on Thursday afternoon. And then Lyles left the track in a wheelchair.

Lyles appeared exhausted after finishing the race in third at 19.70, sitting down on the track as medical personnel made their way over.

The American star briefly got back up off the track and walked a few steps, then was placed into a wheelchair. NBC provided an update a few minutes after the race, indicating that Lyles had previously tested positive for COVID-19.

“As we saw Noah Lyles being taken off in a there wheelchair, I ran down underneath the stadium to try and find where he was,” NBC reporter Lewis Johnson said. “I ran into his mom, Keisha Caine, who was distraught, trying to find him as well. We found Noah Lyles in medical there being tended to, and she did confirm that Noah had been diagnosed with COVID two days ago.

“That’s right, diagnosed with COVID two days ago, but he decided he was going to run anyway. Obviously what he has there, it may have affected how he performed. He is now, again, with medical people, and again, his mom is awfully distraught. But that’s the issue. Noah has COVID.”

In the day leading up to the 200-meter dash final, Lyles was seen around the track facilities wearing a mask.

Noah Lyles has also battled asthma throughout his life, potentially further exacerbating any breathing issues. He certainly didn’t quite seem to be himself on Thursday.

The 200-meter dash didn’t get off to a great start for him.

He was a little slow out of the blocks and didn’t achieve his normal top speed through the heart of the race. Lyles never led, working out of a middle lane. And he couldn’t seem to unlock the extra gear he’s capable of.

Instead, it was American Kenneth Bednarek who was quick out of the blocks, recording a 1.93 in his first 10-meter split. Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo was a hair quicker at 1.91, and it was Tebogo who would go on to win convincingly.

The 21-year-old Tebogo finished in 19.46, a solid 0.16 ahead of Bednarek, who finished with the silver medal. Lyles took home the bronze.