What's wrong with Lyles this year?

I would be surprised if Cherry if Cherry did not try to beat Norman, it's not Formula 1 with team orders.

some athletes have been preparing to peak in 2020... Some of the upsets are just examples of mistiming.

Nothing was broken last year, so he shouldn't have added muscle. The fluidity is key. 19.74 is still awfully good. Just surprised that his top end speed couldn't match De Grasse's here.

Tied his seasons best in the Olympic final. Yeah, a little off this season but it's not like he didn't deliver tonight. Two guys were better. Got out well, ran a great curve, just couldn't hold on.

I don't get why the attitude this cycle seems to be gold or bust. He ran well & got an Olympic medal.

NERunner0353 wrote:

Tied his seasons best in the Olympic final. Yeah, a little off this season but it's not like he didn't deliver tonight. Two guys were better. Got out well, ran a great curve, just couldn't hold on.

I don't get why the attitude this cycle seems to be gold or bust. He ran well & got an Olympic medal.

Some countries appreciate their athletes getting to the Olympics

Some countries appreciate their athletes getting any medal

USA only gold is good enough. Get gold or go home.

Lets Run Armchair twats who can't even run 17.00 in the 100M throwing shade at these Olympians.

De grasses and Bednarek were more impressive in heats and semis than Lyles. So no surprise they went 1-2. Those who were predicting Lyles and the kid to win were viewing through rose tinted specs.

a regular guy wrote:

he ran 19.74

thats a solid time not to say great.

he delivered, it is just that there were two guys running faster.

^… this.

I think Lyles got overconfident. In 2018 and 2019 the 200m field was very very weak and the one time someone credible ran against him in the 200m, in this case Norman, Lyles was beaten. In doha 2019 he ran against a bunch of nobodies except de grasse and that wasn't even a fully recovered de grasse.

He needs to quickly get back in his 19.50 shape because the 200m field got a lot tougher and it will get even tougher as he will have to beat a even stronger De Grasse, Bednarek and Knighton. Hell even Kerley is a threat

I think Lyles got overconfident. In 2018 and 2019 the 200m field was very very weak and the one time someone credible ran against him in the 200m, in this case Norman, Lyles was beaten. In doha 2019 he ran against a bunch of nobodies except de grasse and that wasn't even a fully recovered de grasse.

He needs to quickly get back in his 19.50 shape because the 200m field got a lot tougher and it will get even tougher as he will have to beat a even stronger De Grasse, Bednarek and Knighton. Hell even Kerley is a threat

Personal opinion here.

Noah strikes me as a great kid - but the operative word here being "kid". Outside of sport he still has a lot of, how should I say this "youthful" pastimes such as his video games, painting, playing with lego and his Dragonball Z/anime interests.

Now that this is definitive, but when I put this together with his social media/twitter outputs I get the impression of a child very much in a grown mans body. I'm trying to say this in way that isn't disparaging but it is what it is. And I believe that to a large degree this "youthful" approach to life was what made him so successful and bulletproof when he first entered the pro ranks.

But just as a very youthful mindset can work so well when things are going well, it can do the opposite when you face adversity. We all remember being kids and what it's like when things go well right? Well also remember the first time things don't and how difficult it can be to comprehend that. The understanding that life has ups and downs and how to deal with it is all part of maturity.

I don't think anything really happened to Noah per se - but I think things got real with the pressure and expectation of winning the Olympics and he is not mentally equipped to handle it. I think this contributed to the anxiety/depression and whatever the ramifications (some people mentioned the weight gain etc) of that was. In 2019 I saw a happy, care-free kid out there dancing and doing his thing - in 2021 I saw someone trying to the do same stuff but in a more forced and contrived way. He just didn't look happy and looked more troubled and skittish than anything.

womp wrote:

He's been dealing with depression and was started on Zoloft at some point, which made it difficult for him to get mentally hyped up for races and may have contributed to some of his reported weight gain. Weight gain isn't as common on Zoloft but some people put on 5-10lbs on SSRIs in general. Had a college teammate who went through a similar thing with Zoloft, went from a great PR sophomore indoor season to Zoloft to just dead in the water until his senior year.

https://www.si.com/olympics/2021/07/23/noah-lyles-depression-mental-health-tokyo-olympics-daily-cover

I didn’t know this. This explains it all to me, he’s not going to be in top condition while dealing with depression.

NYDCRunner1 wrote:

NERunner0353 wrote:

Tied his seasons best in the Olympic final. Yeah, a little off this season but it's not like he didn't deliver tonight. Two guys were better. Got out well, ran a great curve, just couldn't hold on.

I don't get why the attitude this cycle seems to be gold or bust. He ran well & got an Olympic medal.

Some countries appreciate their athletes getting to the Olympics

Some countries appreciate their athletes getting any medal

USA only gold is good enough. Get gold or go home.

Lets Run Armchair twats who can't even run 17.00 in the 100M throwing shade at these Olympians.

Bullseye!!

LR MB is the neo-con, wannabe alpha-male, misogynistic safe place!

Lyles is a great runner - bronze - sub 20. Just got beat today by a couple of guys who were quicker on this day.

debosse wrote:

Just hasn't been himself this year.

For the final, he actually got out great.

He then faded at the end of the 200. Was that pressure getting to him?

He needs to take a step back and focus on running instead of the social media "pressure" these young stars are falling victim too.

It’s easy. Just look at him. He’s not victim of “social media pressure” lol. That’s a joke. He got to big. His team that adding strength was needed for his start for the 100. He always thought the 200 was in the bag. It’s a shame too cause Lyles of a year or two ago easily runs 19.5 if not faster on this super fast track. Same with Norman.

zcxvzcxv wrote:

Nothing was broken last year, so he shouldn't have added muscle. The fluidity is key. 19.74 is still awfully good. Just surprised that his top end speed couldn't match De Grasse's here.

^^^^we have a winner. He talked about how he needed to get stronger for the rounds and the 100 especially. His top end / speed endurance was unmatched two years ago. He got some bad advice lol.

Happy for De Grasse tho. He is called clutch. Was hoping Kenny b would win that tho but good for degrasse

RedditisBetter wrote:

NYDCRunner1 wrote:

Some countries appreciate their athletes getting to the Olympics

Some countries appreciate their athletes getting any medal

USA only gold is good enough. Get gold or go home.

Lets Run Armchair twats who can't even run 17.00 in the 100M throwing shade at these Olympians.

Bullseye!!

LR MB is the neo-con, wannabe alpha-male, misogynistic safe place!

Thank you. These couch critics are killing me. Dude just got an Olympic medal after a pandemic year with a great time and here comes “But it wasn’t a pr” lol.

more weight his year? extra muscle/fat != faster? wrote:

Sprint2250 wrote:

I agree. His stride was much more fluid in 2018-2019. His arms move a bit different as well. Not sure what’s happened with the weight training.

He does look a bit heavier to me as well. I wouldn't be surprised if the extra weight hindered his performances this year.

I thought he looked like the smoothest in the field stride wise.

Also having a social media presence doesn’t take away from training. Post less on LetsRun and focus on your job?

dullard wrote:

Cocky mf ate de Grasse's dust.

Who Cares?!?!? Did you say Bolt was a Cocky MF?? most of these guys at this level are D!ck swingers. NEXT!!!

NYDCRunner1 wrote:

NERunner0353 wrote:

Tied his seasons best in the Olympic final. Yeah, a little off this season but it's not like he didn't deliver tonight. Two guys were better. Got out well, ran a great curve, just couldn't hold on.

I don't get why the attitude this cycle seems to be gold or bust. He ran well & got an Olympic medal.

Some countries appreciate their athletes getting to the Olympics

Some countries appreciate their athletes getting any medal

USA only gold is good enough. Get gold or go home.

Lets Run Armchair twats who can't even run 17.00 in the 100M throwing shade at these Olympians.

That needs emphasis; you are spot on.