Noah Lyles was confident in himself and the rest of Team USA last year. It seems like he jinxed his own success at the Paris Olympics. The athlete was asked a simple question last year at the World Relays; whether he sees Canada as a threat in the track and field events and he replied with a cheeky dig instead.

The universe had a way of getting back at Lyles, who is also suffering from Covid-19. Unfortunately, the latter piece of information didn’t stop Canada’s President Justin Trudeau from taking a shot at the athlete for his unkind words for his country’s athletes.

Canada’s President rubs victory in Noah Lyles’ face amidst Covid

When he was questioned by a reporter in 2023 about whether he sees Canada as a threat in the 4x100m event moving forward, Lyles asked, “Who?” He took this dig at the World Relays last year. Lyles wanted to show that he didn’t see Canadians as intimidating competitors, at least in his sport.

However, two twisted things happened for the United States at the Paris Olympics this year. Firstly, Noah Lyles was tested positive for Covid-19, forcing him to drop off the 4x100m race. Secondly, Team USA was disqualified from the race on the basis of technicality. This disqualification granted Team Canada the gold medal in the track event. The President of Canada wasn’t far behind in the race, as he also took a shot at his neighboring country. Justin Trudeau reposted the Lyles’ cheeky interview comment on his X timeline and wrote, “Sorry 👀🥇“.

Team Canada would have lost the gold medal if it weren’t for rule TR24.7, which deals with passing the baton outside the takeover zone (early/late takeover). This is the technicality based on which the American team was disqualified from the competition.

Although the States lost in this event, Lyles was still able to secure a medal for them.

Noah Lyles seems happy with his performance

Before his 200m finals in Paris, the sprinting supernova had contracted the coronavirus. However, he didn’t reveal this information until later on. Lyles ran for his country despite carrying a global-pandemic-level virus inside him. The symptoms surely held him back from giving his best on the track. As a result, Noah Lyles lost the 200m race but still managed to ascend the podium for the victory ceremony as he bagged the bronze medal. In an interview, the athlete revealed that this move made him feel proud of himself. This is because Lyles was disappointed in him at the Tokyo Olympics.

There was fan backlash all over the internet when he later revealed after the race that he was affected with Covid. Irrespective of the sentiment, Lyles managed to score a victory for himself and his country. Sprinting while your lungs are not in their best of state is a feat that he is going to remember forever. Maybe if the proud athlete hadn’t contracted the virus, Canada may not be celebrating the gold medal now. Unfortunately, we will have to wait until the next big international event to see how the next race plays out.

Do you think Noah Lyles’ presence could have altered the result in Team USA’s favor?