After months of saying he would beat everyone on the biggest stage in the world, Noah Lyles has backed up every word at Stade de France in dramatic fashion. The 27-year-old sprinter ended Team USA’s 100m medal drought and broke the 20-year curse. However, Lyles has done so despite battling not one, or two, but six medical conditions.

“I have Asthma, allergies, dyslexia, ADD, anxiety, and Depression,” the newly crowned gold medalist wrote on X. However, the champion didn’t let breathing difficulties, learning disability or mental health issues define who he is. “I will tell you that what you have does not define what you can become. Why Not You?” the Olympic champion added, as he promised to become the second man since Carl Lewis to claim the sprint double in the Olympics.

Lyles sits firmly atop the 200m mountain with the current world-leading time. He will go into the 200m as the favorite and an immensely boosted confidence. “The 100m is by far the hardest one… I feel that was the one that could have slipped away,” he told the press. However, becoming the first man since Justin Gatlin in 2004 to win 100m Olympic gold was grueling.

While the defending world champion may have looked indestructible on the final stretch, the athlete has struggled with multiple health issues since he was a child. The 27-year-old was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), dyslexia, and asthma as a child. During his childhood, there was a time when those conditions dictated his life. In fact, they still have an impact on his day to day.

“Asthma definitely affects kind of everything I do in terms of health, physical fitness, sometimes even emotional because if you’re emotionally fatigued, that can bring your immune system down,” Noah Lyles told CNN in 2020. The 2x Olympic medalist’s asthma caused allergies, while his learning disabilities subject the young sprinter to incessant bullying in school.

However, sports came to the sprinter’s rescue. Track and field gave Lyles purpose and the fuel to beat the odds. Yet, the bullying didn’t stop although his confidence and accolades grew, it simply took another form. Although Lyles faced ridicule every step of the way to 100m glory, only his mother knew the adversity he overcame to attain such confidence.

Noah Lyles’ mother fought for her son

“You did it. Oh my god, you’re so amazing!” said the World Champion’s mother as ran to the stands to hug her. As the Olympian ran for gold, Keisha Cain cheered from the stands. The sprinter’s mother has always been vocal about her son’s health issues and has spoken about the resilience it took to overcome those challenges. During an interview with TIME, Cain revealed a scarring memory involving Lyles.

While explaining how severely asthma affected her son, Cain recounted an incident. “One day I was on a conference call for work and the supervisor said, ‘Could somebody take their dog out?'” she said. Noah Lyles had developed such a bad cough, Cain’s supervisor thought she had a dog inside her home. Yet, today, those are distant memories and a reminder of how far her son has come.

The American sprinter has already broken the 20-year gold medal drought. Now he stands on the cusp of matching not one but two records. Besides having the opportunity to equal Carl Lewis’s 1984 Olympic sprint double, the 27-year-old has a genuine shot at surpassing Usain Bolt in the 200m. Will he do it? Write your opinions in the comments.