Noah Lyles Says He’ll Race Tyreek Hill If There’s No ‘Gimmicks’

Topline

Newly minted Olympic gold medalist sprinter Noah Lyles says he would race Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill—who claims he could beat the Olympic champion in a race—as long as it’s a legitimate match with no “gimmicks,” after days of the two athletes tossing insults back and forth.

Lyles won gold in the 100-meter dash. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

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Key Facts

Lyles appeared on the Today Show Wednesday morning and responded to Hill’s challenge to a race, stating he would face off against Hill in a 100-meter race, but warned Hill would be “racing against a guy who has worked his whole life to get the title of ‘the world’s fastest man.’”

Hill had previously challenged Lyles to a 50-yard race, which Lyles has rejected, stating if Hill wants to challenge an Olympic champion, “you have to challenge that in his event.”

After Hill’s challenge, Lyles appeared on Shannon Sharpe’s Nightcap Show and said Hill is “just chasing clout,” joking that he had forgotten Hill’s name.

Hill first said he would beat Lyles in a race last week after slamming Lyles for his comments that champions in American sports leagues—at the time specifically referring to the NBA—shouldn’t be considered world champions.

Hill said Lyles should “just speak on what you know about, and that’s track,” accusing him of “pretending” to have Covid-19 in the 200-meter race in which he won the bronze medal.

Surprising Fact

Hill is a former track runner and won two medals at the 2012 world junior championships: a gold with the American team in the 4×100 relay, and an individual bronze medal in the 200-meter dash. Hill’s 200-meter time of 20.14 seconds would have qualified him to the Olympic Trials in 2012, though he did not participate, and he expressed interest in qualifying to the Tokyo Olympics, though he did not participate after the games were delayed because of COVID-19. Hill won the 60-meter race at the USA Track and Field Indoor Championships in 2023, reportedly his first race since 2014. “Never racing again had me out there looking wild,” Hill joked at the time.

Key Background

Lyles won two medals at the Paris Olympic Games—a gold in the 100 meter race, and a bronze in the 200 meter, his second and third career Olympic medals after winning bronze in the 200 meter in Tokyo. Lyles won gold in a race so tight he had thought Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson, the silver medalist, had won. Lyles was declared the winner because his torso had crossed the finish line first, beating out Thompson by five thousandths of a second. Lyles’ gold medal followed his controversial claim days earlier that he was the “fastest man in the world,” which he had said because he won the 100-meter race at the 2023 world championships. Critics had previously alleged Lyles shouldn’t assume the title because prior to the Olympics, Thompson had a faster 100-meter time recorded this year than Lyles, and both fall behind Usain Bolt’s record-setting 100-meter time from 2009. Lyles stirred controversy again after he revealed he ran the 200-meter dash with COVID-19. Lyles, who won the 200-meter event three times at the world championships, collapsed after the race. He said he tried to keep his diagnosis private because he didn’t want his competitors to fear competing, nor did he want them to think they had a leg up over Lyles.

Tangent

Other athletes have criticized Lyles’ comments that champions in American leagues can’t be considered world champions. “Somebody help this brother,” Phoenix Suns player Kevin Durant said, while Suns player Devin Booker responded on Instagram with a face-palming emoji.