LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) — Noah Lyles said Tuesday he is “super excited” about how his preparation is shaping up as he works to defend his 100m and 200m world titles next month.
The Olympic 100m champion from Paris had his training disrupted by an injury in April but clocked his first sub-10-second run of the year on Saturday in Poland, finishing in 9.90 seconds. That time placed him just 0.03 behind Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson, the world’s fastest man this season.
Lyles will try to build on that performance when he lines up for another 100m race Wednesday in Lausanne’s Diamond League meet. Thompson, who ran 9.75 in June, was originally expected to race but has since withdrawn. The field still includes top contenders like American Courtney Lindsey (9.83) and Jamaica’s Oblique Seville (9.82).
“I’m really happy because I can see the progress,” said Lyles, who has only raced three 100m events since mid-July. “Everybody else has had eight or ten already, so my schedule’s been rushed. But sometimes you just have to appreciate the positives.”
The 28-year-old American already has guaranteed entry for the world championships in Tokyo, beginning Sept. 13, as defending champion in both sprints. He also anchored the U.S. to 4x100m relay gold in Budapest two years ago. Lyles plans to run just two more races before Tokyo, including a 200m in Zurich next week where Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo of Botswana is expected to feature.
“I know something special is coming,” Lyles said. “My body is adapting to the speed.”
Also competing in Lausanne is Olympic 800m champion Keely Hodgkinson, who will run her second race since her Paris triumph. She stunned the field in Poland last weekend with a world-leading 1:54.74, the ninth-fastest time ever recorded, in an event where the long-standing world record dates back more than four decades.
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