American sprinter Noah Lyles is embracing a rare summer season without major global championships, allowing him to prioritize personal performance and enjoyment over traditional peak competition cycles. With no Olympic Games or World Athletics Championships scheduled this summer, Lyles, the 28-year-old Olympic 100-meter champion and eight-time world champion, is focusing on running fast whenever he chooses rather than timing his training for a specific event.
Lyles arrived in Paris this week, returning to the city where he won Olympic gold two years ago, to compete in Sunday’s Diamond League meet at Charlety Stadium. Despite concerns over extreme heat in the French capital, the event has received approval to proceed. During the week, Lyles trained alongside fellow American Jordan Anthony, the world indoor 60m champion, and Trinidadian Jereem Richards, the world 400m silver medalist, under coach Lance Brauman before the session was cut short due to the heatwave.
Reflecting on his season so far, Lyles highlighted strong early performances, including a 100m victory in Rome with a time of 9.8 seconds—the third fastest worldwide this year—and a record-breaking 14.67 seconds in the rarely contested 150m in Ostrava. That race, featuring a high-profile duel with Australian sprinter Gout Gout, was one Lyles noted he would unlikely have been able to prioritize during a normal season focused on peak performance at world championships or the Olympics.
The Florida-based athlete, who has been competing professionally for a decade, described enjoying the increased freedom to select meets he finds enjoyable and to balance training with his varied personal interests such as fashion, manga, and rap music. After Paris, he does not plan to race again until the US Championships in late July.
Lyles also outlined plans for the summer beyond the track, including attendance at a major US geek culture and manga convention, watching a World Cup soccer semifinal, and participating in the inaugural Ultimate Championships in Budapest in September. At the Budapest event, he will contribute creatively to organizing athletes’ entrances and medal ceremonies, reflecting his long-standing belief that athletics must modernize and blend sport with entertainment.
“This is a good start,” Lyles said of the evolving format, emphasizing that these new ventures will not interfere with his long-term goals at world championships or future Olympic competitions.