Noah Lyles is one of the best athletes in the world right now. His stocks have been ever rising since 2017 when he won his first-ever Diamond League. Now, post his performances at the Paris Olympics, it feels like his popularity has grown into an all-time high. With that, so has his influence on and off the court.

This has come with both positives and negatives. Lyles has been part of numerous controversies like the one with the NBA, where he called them out for calling their title winners ‘world champions’. But, some positive has definitely come out of it too. He used his influence to help a Paralympian athlete get back on track.

Nick Mayhugh was heavily successful in the Tokyo Paralympics as he won three gold medals in the edition. However, this didn’t satisfy him as he was reclassified in athletes with lesser disabilities. This made him ineligible to defend his medals in Paris, instead competing in a different competition. He was losing his love for the sport and thus he wanted better competition. The athlete wanted to train with people who are better than him and could push him to the next level.

He called up Noah Lyles and asked him to train with his camp. Lyles put him in touch with his coach, Lance Brauman. However, he had only trained Olympians and not Paralympians. Thus, there was very little chance of him taking Mayhugh as one of his athletes. But after he talked with him, Brauman decided to give it a shot. The rest is history.

Despite winning everything in Tokyo, somehow Mayhugh’s satisfaction for his success was not there. However, training under Brauman, he rediscovered his love for the sport. His path for the 100m and long jump in Paris was set, and he’s now more than optimistic that he will bring another medal home. He also heaped praise on Noah Lyles, who he credited as being a huge encouragement to him, despite being younger.

It’s true that Lyles who has been on the top of his game for some time now, has been inspiring a lot of athletes. His message after winning the 100m at the Paris Olympics only makes it more evident.

Noah Lyles’ inspiring message after winning the 100m Gold medal at the Paris Olympics

At the men’s 100m final during the Paris Olympics, Noah Lyles needed to win. After his controversial comments about the NBA, the whole world was watching, with some even waiting for him to fail. This fueled his passion even as he ran an immensely close race with Kishane Thompson, where both crossed the finish line at the same time. Lyles was awarded the gold medal after it was decided that his upper body was further ahead than Thompson.

Thus, these circumstances leading to his victory only made it more special. After the race, he took to X writing an inspirational message for his fans. He said, “I have Asthma, allergies, dyslexia, ADD, anxiety, and depression,” Lyles wrote. “But I will tell you that what you have does not define what you can become. Why Not You!” He has definitely been an inspiration to aspiring athletes and will be that for years to come.