Athletics-Lyles eyes American records as he plots path to Los Angeles Olympics

Jul 24, 2026; New York, NY, USA; Noah Lyles celebrates after winning the 100m in 9.79 during the USATF Championships at Icahn Stadium.

Sept 8 (Reuters) - American records, another ⁠world title and Olympic gold in Los Angeles are all on Noah Lyles' radar after the sprinter shut ⁠down his 2026 season and began plotting what he believes could be the defining two years of ‌his career.

Lyles, who was forced to end his season early due to injury days before the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championships, said on Tuesday that performances this year had convinced him he was capable of running significantly faster than his world-leading 9.79 seconds in the 100 metres.

"I don't like to ​put limits on myself," Lyles told reporters on a video call ahead of ⁠this week's Ultimate Championships in Budapest, an ⁠event he had a big role in designing.

"In my head, American records definitely come in, touching the stars, going after ⁠anything ‌and everything."

Tyson Gay set the national 100m record of 9.69 in 2009, while Lyles already owns the U.S. 200m record of 19.31 set in 2022.

He said he surprised himself by running two 9.7-second races at the U.S. championships ⁠despite feeling he had yet to put together a technically complete race.

"It's proven ​to myself that I can run ‌very fast, even though I'm not 100% perfect with my first 30 (metres)," he said.

The 29-year-old revealed that he ⁠and his team ​would hold planning sessions later this year to map out the next two seasons, describing 2027 as the foundation for his bid to retain his 100m Olympic gold on home soil in Los Angeles.

"2027 is the building block for 2028," he said. "Let's get that plan smoothed ⁠and polished so that when we go into 2028, we're just following ​the blueprint because we know it's going to work."

To maximise his chances, Lyles said he intended to devote more attention to training and competition after a year that included numerous media and promotional commitments, plus a wedding to Jamaican sprinter Junelle Bromfield in ⁠April.

"I'm putting a lot more focus on more running and a lot less appearances," he said. "I think we've proven this year that in the U.S. and even in the world, the world knows Noah Lyles."

The eight-time world champion announced on Friday he was shelving his season, saying a minor strain suffered earlier in the season led to other physical issues that hampered ​his training.

Lyles had raised injury concerns at the U.S. championships in July when he ⁠pulled up during the men's 200m final after winning the 100m title in 9.79, which matched his personal best.

He later described ​the issue as a cramp and had indicated he expected to compete in ‌Budapest.

The withdrawal of one of the sport's most recognisable stars ​is a blow to World Athletics' new season-ending showcase that offers a record $10-million prize purse. The 29-year-old said he still planned to attend the event which runs Friday through Sunday.

(Reporting by Lori EwingEditing by Toby Davis)

Thank you for your report!

Athletics-Lyles eyes American records as he plots path to Los Angeles Olympics

Triathlon-Former world and Olympic champion Jonny Brownlee retires aged 36

Figure skating-Olympic champion Liu to sit out 2026-27 season

2026 年 7 月 24 日；美国纽约州纽约市；诺亚·莱尔斯在伊坎体育场举行的美国田径锦标赛上以 9.79 秒的成绩赢得 100 米冠军后庆祝。

9 月 8 日（路透社）——短跑运动员诺亚·莱尔斯宣布结束 2026 赛季，并开始筹划他认为可能是其职业生涯决定性的两年，他的目标是打破美国纪录，再夺一个世界冠军头衔，并在洛杉矶奥运会上获得金牌。

莱尔斯因伤被迫在首届世界田径极限锦标赛开赛前几天提前结束了本赛季的比赛。周二，他表示，今年的表现让他确信，他有能力跑得比他在100米比赛中保持的世界领先成绩9.79秒快得多。

“我不喜欢给自己设限，”莱尔斯在本周布达佩斯举行的终极锦标赛前夕通过视频通话告诉记者，他在这项赛事的设计中发挥了重要作用。

“在我看来，美国唱片绝对名列前茅，它们触及星辰，追求一切。”

泰森·盖伊在 2009 年创造了 9.69 秒的全国 100 米纪录，而莱尔斯已经拥有 2022 年创造的 19.31 秒的美国 200 米纪录。

他说，尽管他觉得自己还没有完成一场技术上完美的比赛，但他在美国锦标赛上跑出了两场 9.7 秒的成绩，这让他自己都感到惊讶。

“这已经向我自己证明，即使我的前 30 米跑得还不够完美，我仍然可以跑得很快，”他说。

这位 29 岁的运动员透露，他和他的团队将在今年晚些时候举行规划会议，制定未来两个赛季的计划，并将 2027 年描述为他在洛杉矶本土卫冕 100 米奥运金牌的基础。

“2027年是2028年的基础，”他说。“让我们把这个计划完善打磨好，这样到了2028年，我们就可以按照蓝图行事，因为我们知道它会奏效。”

为了最大限度地提高自己的机会，莱尔斯表示，在经历了包括众多媒体和宣传活动以及4月份与牙买加短跑运动员朱内尔·布罗姆菲尔德的婚礼在内的一年后，他打算将更多精力投入到训练和比赛中。

“我现在把更多精力放在跑步上，减少露面，”他说。“我认为我们今年已经证明，在美国乃至全世界，诺亚·莱尔斯都是家喻户晓的人物。”

这位八届世界冠军周五宣布他将暂停本赛季的比赛，称赛季初的一次轻微拉伤导致了其他身体问题，阻碍了他的训练。

莱尔斯在7月份的美国锦标赛上就曾引发人们对他伤病的担忧，当时他在男子200米决赛中途退出比赛，此前他以9.79秒的成绩赢得了100米冠军，追平了他的个人最佳成绩。

他后来将这个问题描述为抽筋，并表示他预计会参加布达佩斯的比赛。

这位体坛最具知名度的明星之一的退出，对世界田径联合会这项奖金高达1000万美元的全新赛季收官之战来说无疑是一次打击。这位29岁的选手表示，他仍然计划参加这场从周五持续到周日的赛事。

（Lori Ewing报道，Toby Davis编辑）

感谢您的报告！

田径——莱尔斯瞄准美国纪录，为进军洛杉矶奥运会做准备

铁人三项——前世界冠军和奥运冠军乔尼·布朗利36岁退役

花样滑冰奥运冠军刘将缺席2026-27赛季