Noah Lyles took center stage at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Sunday, as the American sprinter won the first Olympic gold medal of his career after securing the victory in the men's 100m final, a thrilling race that ended in a stunning photo finish.
Lyles, who has not been shy about expressing his goals in Paris, quickly found the NBC cameras and declared that he "told" America he would win the race. But afterwards Lyles, feeling introspective about the victory, took to X, formerly Twitter and posted an inspiring message detailing all he has had to overcome to get to this point.
I have Asthma, allergies, dyslexia, ADD, anxiety, and Depression.
— Noah Lyles, OLY (@LylesNoah) August 4, 2024
But I will tell you that what you have does not define what you can become.
Why Not You!
Lyles was diagnosed with asthma when he was five years old. Lyles slipped into a depression after the COVID-19 pandemic, admitting that he felt depressed during the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
In a post on X back in 2020, Lyles shared that he was taking antidepressants, which he stopped taking before the Olympic trials in the lead-up to the Tokyo Olympics, where he took home a bronze medal in the 200m. He explained the mental battle he had to deal with coming on and off the antidepressants, all while trying to compete at the Olympics.
And yet, Lyles overcame all these obstacles-and more-to become an Olympic gold medalist.
Why not him, indeed.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Noah Lyles Had Such an Inspiring Message After Winning Olympic Gold in 100m .
