Another day, another thing for Noah Lyles to smile about. The 27-year-old Olympic gold medalist is a self-proclaimed anime fan. When he whipped out the rare Blue-Eyes White Dragon Yu-Gi-Oh! card from his unitard at the Olympic Team Trials earlier this year, fans went berserk with his knowledge of the popular trading card game. And now, Lyles’ inner anime fanboy has another reason to beam broadly.

In his latest series of Instagram stories, Lyles shared with his fans details of the latest gift he received from none other than Konami. The legendary video game developer acknowledged the sprinter’s love for anime in the most delightful way possible. “I got a knock on the door to deliver something from Konami,” says Lyles in his IG story before showing off the newest addition to his collection.

The World’s Fastest Man has now been bestowed with the title of Platinum Dark Magician by the iconic Japanese company. “This time, they sent an authenticity certificate,” Noah reveals to his fans in the Insta update. Along with the rare item, the Virginia native also received a set of more Yu-Gi-Oh! cards from the makers. Naturally, the Olympian could barely hold back on his grin. The surprise was made even more pleasant by the fact that it arrived right after Lyles had posted videos of his new sneakers.

In his previous story, the 2024 Olympic gold medalist unveiled the white sneakers with White Dragon graphics on its side. The shoes looked worthy of a true anime fan, and Konami’s gift would only add to the happiness. For obvious reasons, the framed Dark Magician card made Lyles feel the love of Konami. This is the highest-level magic user card, which is only the most dedicated Yu-Gi-Oh! fans can boast about in their collection.

The 99.9% pure silver card series was launched in 2021 and underscores the Dark Magician’s importance in the lore. “The ultimate wizard in terms of attack and defense,” the official website defines the uniqueness of the card, and notes that “these cards are not for everyone”. The $1,300 collectible will add significant charm to Lyles’ anime collection, which, by the looks of it, takes up significant space in his room. But anime only makes up for a small portion of the flamboyance that makes Noah Lyles unique.

Noah Lyles loves being the odd one out in the crowd

“I’m a geek. Nerds are more intelligent. I feel like geeks are just more obsessed on a specific cultural thing. So I’m a geek,” Noah said during an episode of ‘Everybody Wants To Be Us’ podcast in August. “When it comes to anime, pop culture, Marvel, DC, superheroes, Legos, I have an interest in almost everything out there.” He then went on to elaborate further on his love for anything that might come off as childish to some people. But that has never stopped Lyles from hailing shows like Full Metal Alchemist as his favorite anime show, or announcing his love for Cage of Eden, a popular manga series.

Lyles also loves music and has a few releases under his name to date. “I feel like I bridge a lot of gaps when it comes to music, when it comes to fashion when it comes to being quirky,” claims the sprinter, and we aren’t one to argue about how this only complements his eccentric personality. What about you? Are you also a fan of Noah Lyles, being a fan of anime and other comics? Let us know in the comments below.