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Apart from the showmanship, the posturing, and the dyed orange hair, there is more to Noah Lyles.

The unstoppable American sprinter outran a world-class field in the 200-meter showdown at the global track event in Tokyo on Friday, securing his fourth straight championship gold in the discipline.

This presents a stark difference to his Games outcomes—bronze in Tokyo in 2021, and once more in Paris last year amid health struggles.

But returning in the city of Tokyo, Lyles erased difficult past experiences to equal the legendary sprinter’s title record.

“I look forward for the next worlds to be the only man to win five 200-meter world championships,” declared Lyles.

“I lacked positive feelings from Tokyo in 2021. Previously I was down, but now I am inspired. I love what I do and I am joyful.

“My face is blasted everywhere Tokyo. This is a joyous moment I am going to treasure with me always.”

Lyles, who was dethroned as the 100-meter titleholder on earlier in the week when he took bronze, secured first place in his preferred event just later that week to earn his 8th global championship.

He had delivered a statement show in Thursday’s heats, posting the quickest time of the year at 19.51 seconds.

After a closing race where he was just 0.01 seconds off the pace, he celebrated by holding up four digits to the crowd.

It was at the global event in 2023 that Lyles asserted himself as the top sprint athlete on the sport’s largest platforms with three golds in Hungary, before claiming the Olympic 100m title at the most recent Summer Games.

Before the competition, Lyles told reporters that he would take bronze in the 100m if it meant he would secure first in the 200 by shattering Bolt’s global best mark.

He won the gold—but the world best stays out of reach for now.

Lyles' American team-mate Kenny Bednarek had to accept second place—his fourth consecutive across the last four major global events.

Bednarek and Lyles have a rocky dynamic, and nearly came to blows at the national qualifiers when Lyles stared down his rival in defeating him to the sprint crown, to which Bednarek reacted with a push.

Third place went to 21-year-old Jamaican Bryan Levell, with Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo in fourth. Britain's Zharnel Hughes ran a season-best of 19.78 seconds for fifth.

Bol Marks Gold—and Her Forthcoming Marriage

With Olympic women’s 400m hurdles champion Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone choosing to concentrate—with remarkable success—on the flat event, Femke Bol lived up to her favorite tag to keep her world title.

The Dutchwoman won in 51.54, while American Jasmine Jones won silver in a career-high of 52.03. Emma Zapletalova set a country’s best mark of 53.00 to claim bronze.

Bol said taking a break after the 2024 Games had helped her get ready for her successful campaign—as did organizing her marriage.

She revealed her plans to marry to Belgium’s pole vaulter Ben Broeders in the summer and said their forthcoming wedding were “a great distraction.”

“Being a track and field athlete you work really hard, but you also have a lot of time to rest, and it's also a good thing to think about,” she said.

Bol did, however, admit she could have competed against McLaughlin-Levrone, who defeated her into bronze on the way to gold in Paris.

“I probably wouldn't be here with the first place but I really enjoy to race her,” said the young athlete of McLaughlin-Levrone.

“She's the greatest athlete to ever do it in my event so I would have loved to do it, but I also love to see her do so well in the 400 metres.”

‘Who’s the Best?’—Field Event Comes to Thrilling Conclusion

Arguably the most dramatic competition of the day was the men’s triple jump, in which Portuguese athlete Pedro Pichardo emulated the gold he earned at the Tokyo Olympics in spectacular fashion.

Pichardo led going into the last attempts with a leap of 17.55 metres—but this was spectacularly surpassed by Italian Andrea Dallavalle.

Dallavalle, only fifth in the standings up to that point, leaped a huge personal best of 17.64m to take the top spot.

With the women’s 200m final postponed to allow the jumping competition to finish and the entire stadium watching, Pichardo then jumped 17.91 meters with his final effort—the best of anyone this year.

“I am the greatest!” he shouted down the camera in triumph. There was no debate.

Cuban athlete Lazaro Martinez, who stopped with a muscle injury during his run up, won bronze.