Noah Lyles runs 9.79 to claim third US 100m championship

Noah Lyles recovered from a slow start and powered through the final 30 metres to win his third United States 100m title in 9.79 seconds, the fastest time recorded in the world this season.

The Olympic champion separated himself late in the race at the US athletics championships in New York. Ronnie Baker and Kenny Bednarek both finished in 9.88, with Baker awarded second place and Bednarek taking third. Former world champion Christian Coleman followed in 9.93.

Lyles' winning time matched the personal best he set while taking Olympic gold in Paris in 2024. It also improved on the previous 2026 world lead of 9.82, run by Oblique Seville at the Jamaican championships in June.

A race won after the opening metres

Lyles did not lead out of the blocks, but he remained close enough to attack the second half of the race. He told NBC that he trusted the gap could be recovered and followed his coach's instruction not to allow the runners ahead to escape.

That finish is central to his reputation. The 100m leaves almost no time to correct an error, yet Lyles turned an imperfect start into a clear victory by maintaining his form and speed as the field approached the line.

The result adds a third national 100m crown to his record and strengthens his position in a season without an Olympic team trial or World Championships selection place attached to the meet. Even without those qualification stakes, a national title and a world-leading time provide a direct measure of form against a strong American field.

Richardson returns to the top nationally

Sha'Carri Richardson won the women's 100m in 10.77 seconds with a following wind of 0.9 metres per second. The 2023 world champion and 2024 Olympic silver medallist pulled away from training partner Kayla White, who finished second in 10.90. Tamari Davis placed third in 11.00.

Richardson described the victory as the product of feeling healthier mentally, physically and emotionally. Her performance secured a third national title after a difficult 2025 season in which she finished outside the medals while defending her world championship.

The men's and women's results put two of the United States' best-known sprinters back at the centre of the short-sprint season on the same evening.

Other results shape the national meet

Lyles was due to return for the 200m heats the following day, giving him little time to dwell on the 100m victory. Several prominent athletes adjusted their programmes or skipped events because no global championship team places were at stake.

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, who won 100m, 200m and 4x100m gold at the previous World Championships, sat out the 100m and planned to begin her meet in the 200m. Olympic 400m champion Quincy Hall failed to progress from his heats after running 46.47, while Khaleb McRae led the opening round in 44.65.

In the men's 800m, 17-year-old Cooper Lutkenhaus advanced by winning his heat in 1:45.83. Wes Ferguson recorded the quickest first-round time at 1:45.17, while 2019 world champion Donovan Brazier did not qualify for the final.

For Lyles, the 9.79 performance supplies the clearest headline from the opening programme. It equals the quickest race of his career and establishes the time the rest of the world's leading sprinters must now chase.

Source attribution: The Express Tribune, reporting information supplied by AFP.