“I would like to announce the SPRINT has exceeded all my expectations!!!” said the “Fastest man alive” Noah Lyles about the documentary. He may be preparing for the Olympics to represent the USA on the elite stage of the Olympics right now. But the world does not have to wait till the Olympics to get a glimpse of the action and the grit it takes to be a world-class athlete.

He has teamed up with Netflix to be part of a documentary that delves deep into the relationships, rivalries, trials, and tribulations of track and field. Focusing mainly on the 100m and 200m champions, the series will follow athletes as they try to make every millisecond count. Headlining, that is Noah Lyles. After attending the premier in New York styled head to toe in white, he is ready to field some criticism.

Recently, Noah Lyles appeared on a YouTube podcast with Noah Williams and Colin Waitzman from Track World News to discuss his reaction to Netflix’s SPRINT and how he’s handling the criticism surrounding it. Though the first few episodes of SPRINT have indeed done well, Lyles is not surprised that “people in the track and field world were not completely satisfied.”

However, initially he knew it was going to be a hit. “I knew that it was going to do well that was not going to be an issue for me. I’d seen what box to box had done with other series.” Box to Box Films which is an independent, award-winning production company based in London, Paris, and LA, is handling the series.

They are known to produce extremely gripping feature documentaries that have previously helped revive the fanbase for many sports including F1 racing. Noah Lyles brought up the examples of Drive to survive, which is their racing documentary that has aired for six seasons so far, as well as Breakpoint and Full Swing, which are all very successful.

According to him, “Track has just as much action, is just as, you know, entertaining as all the other sports that they have done.” To bolster his confidence when Noah Lyles spoke to the film crew the day before the World Championships about how the series will do, the crew replied, “Bro I think this is gonna be the best one.”  

However, when explaining how the track and field community was not satisfied, he took the example of his girlfriend and Jamaican sprinter Junelle Bromfield as an example, “she comes in and we watch it, we binge the whole thing in one day.” Then they met up with his mom and his family, where he asked “what did you think about it?”

Junelle replied, “it was okay,” but she did not think it “pretty good” like Lyles did. Then Noah’s sister said something that he was totally in agreement with. She said, “Junelle they’re coming to this sport and asking the experts to show the sneak peek of behind the scenes,” adding, “the show was not designed for us, the show was designed for everybody outside of us.” 

So, it cannot be dramatic and very invigorating for the people within the track and field community who already are the “experts.” Athletes within the community are already familiar with all the ups and downs of the sport, instead it’s for a person who’s a “new fan, who’s occasionally watched that can say ‘oh I did track in high school or I did track in middle school.’” It’s a way for them to get to know all the athletes documented in the series, like Noah Lyles and Sha’Carri Richardson, through the World Championships. 

The World Championships happen every two years, providing more frequent opportunities to see these athletes in action compared to the Olympics, which occur every four years. This will help them get familiar with the athletes and say, “I know the players in the game or at least I know the very top players.”

The series is also set up in a way that they can add more people along the way as well as talk about the Olympics. Additionally, it will help Americans who are not really interested in track and field at the moment when compared to football or baseball, to familiarize themselves with the ins and outs of the sport. 

Netflix’s SPRINT determined to make an impact 

Box to Box Films and Netflix have collaborated once again to create a track and field documentary to give a sneak peek into the tensions off the track and the lives of the top sprinters. The series has already hit Netflix as of 2nd July with 6 episodes and is predicted to create quite a hype over the sport just ahead of the Summer Olympics in Paris.

The film crew followed the top athletes in the game like USA’s Sha’Carri Richardson and Noah Lyles who are both the 100m champions in the 2023 Worlds. As well as Marcell Jacobs from Italy, who is the 100m Olympic champion. 

Jamaica’s Shericka Jackson and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who are the 200m world champion and 5x Olympic gold medalist, respectively. Even Elaine Thompson-Herah will make an appearance. There’s also Zharnel Hughes from the UK, and USA’s Fred Kerley and Gabby Thomas.

The star-studded lineup is going to be accompanied by features from Usain Bolt, Allyson Felix, Ato Boldon, and Michael Johnson. The first season is going to showcase the athletes as they walk out to race in the 2023 Diamond League and World Athletics Championship. The first few episodes opened to a grand premiere in New York City that was attended by Noah Lyles. 

The second season is scripted to show insights into their preparation and performances for the 2024 Olympics. It is produced by James Gay-Rees, Warren Smith, and Paul Martin who all have expert knowledge in what exactly the audience wants to see from a sports documentary.

The series has already gotten the stamp of approval from World Athletics president Sebastian Coe who said the series captures how, “It takes a special talent, both physically and mentally, to succeed in a world where your fate is decided in just 10 seconds.” We’re waiting for Sprint to become just as big of a success as Drive to Survive.