Noah Lyles’ bronze medal win at the Paris Olympics has been a saga in itself. On one hand, it proved Lyles’ indomitable spirit to run to victory, and on the other hand, it led Lyles in the face of a wave of criticisms and debacles. Despite all the barriers, the American sprinter raced through a 102-degree fever and a positive COVID-19 diagnosis, revealing his condition only after the 200-meter final. However, now, months after the conclusion of the Paris Olympics, Lyles has faced an unexpected accusation from the track and field power couple.

Despite isolating and taking approved medications like Paxlovid, Lyles pushed through the rounds to claim his second consecutive Olympic bronze in his marquee event. But while Lyles celebrated his hard-fought victory, he seems to have left the athletic duo unimpressed. Hunter Woodhall and Tara Davis-Woodhall believe that Hunter contracted COVID from Lyles.

The Woodhall couple recently joined Noah Lyles and Rai Benjamin as guests for the track stars’ latest venture. In the recent episode of Beyond the Records Podcast, which premiered on January 2 on YouTube, Hunter revealed that he “got mad beef with Noah.” Going down the lane, the Woodhall couple traced back to days when they interacted with Lyles during their time at the Olympic Village. Hunter revealed how he and his wife connected his illness to their encounters with Lyles.

The story unfolded in a mix of confusion and banter. According to Hunter, he first noticed Lyles wearing a mask after his 100-meter victory and even joked about the possibility of getting sick. “I went and dapped you up, and I was like, ‘There’s a chance that I get sick from this, but I’m not even worried about it,’” Hunter recalled.

Moreover, he then reflected on how they found a 27-year-old partying and dancing despite being unwell. However, the fun time took a serious turn when Hunter fell ill. “I was straight in bed for four days. It was crazy,” he said, adding that the timing aligned too perfectly with his interactions with Lyles. Despite the lighthearted tone, Hunter admitted the aftermath wasn’t a joke. “It sucked, bro,” Tara stated. The trip back to the U.S. was especially grueling for Hunter, who was still recovering. “I think he [Lyles] got it bad too, but man, I was down for days,” added Davis-Woodhall.

Tara chimed in, saying, “We were at the team camp, and everyone had masks on. It was crazy.” Both of them pinned the source of the outbreak on Lyles, with Tara reflecting on the irony, “The joke of the house was Noah gave Hunter COVID, and then he won.” Hunter recounted how Lyles joined a party and hung out with teammates despite his symptoms. “We were like dancing together and stuff. I walked out, and I’m like, ‘Bro, how funny would it be if I got COVID?’” While Lyles’ actions didn’t break any official protocols, he isolated and took precautions to minimize the risk. Still, his decision to race and interact with others has sparked debate.

Noah Lyles gets Kenny Bednarek’s backing after facing backlash post-Paris 2024

After taking the track world by storm, Noah Lyles made a lightning-fast recovery. Replicating his sprinting skills, the 100m gold medalist announced his recovery after merely 5 days of contracting the virus. Just a day before the Paris Olympics drew to a close, Lyles shared his test results on his X account, which showed a single line. Unfortunately, despite the update, the track community was still pretty much mad at the Olympic gold medalist. 

Well, technically, Noah Lyles did not do anything illegal. Unlike Tokyo, the Paris Olympics did not have any restrictions regarding the COVID status of an athlete. It was up to the sole discretion of an individual athlete whether they wanted to carry on with a green light from their doctors. In fact, according to a report from the UN, as many as 40 athletes had COVID during the Olympics. 

Yet, people were not convinced. Labeling Lyles as ‘irresponsible,’ the track fans called out the 100m champ for hugging Letsile Tebogo. Fortunately for Lyles, Kenny Bednarek came to his rescue. “I don’t think I was put at risk. When I found out, it wasn’t that big of a deal. He went out there and did his best while he was sick and I hope he gets better,” said Bednarek. Thus, having a mixed 2024, Noah Lyles would now look to brush off negativities and begin on a fresh new page in the upcoming season.