The lineup for the 100-meter dash of Racers Grand Prix was filled with top-notch athletes, including world champion Noah Lyles, Ferdinand Omanyala, and British sprinter Zharnel Hughes. However, in an unexpected turn of events, Noah Lyles was surpassed by Jamaican sprinter Oblique Seville, winning the 100-meter race with a new world lead of 9.82 seconds.
Following this win, Seville, who is currently coached by Glen Mills, the former coach of Usain Bolt, improved his previous personal best of 9.86. Interestingly, Noah Lyles finished the race 0.02 seconds off his personal best, as he completed the race by placing second in 9.85. Kenya’s Ferdinand Omanyala, took third by clocking a time of 10.02 seconds.
In a post-race interview, a confident Seville spoke about his training to achieve his new personal best. “Me and my coach was working on the execution throughout the week and the past month, and coming out here and get a good execution showed that the work that they put in paid off,” he said
In May, he also lowered his personal best of 20.17 in the 200-meter dash. At the Adidas City Games, he finished first with a new personal best of 19.96. He was followed by Jereem Richards, who finished the dash with the season’s best 20.04.
During 2023, Seville faced many injuries and secured fourth place at the 100-meter dash of Worlds. However, he continues to improve his season at the right time, weeks before the Olympics. “Well, it’s such a tremendous feeling because, as you said last year, because of injuries I wasn’t, I didn’t compete, but for this year, I am actually happy that I competed, and got a personal best, and won in front of my Jamaican fans,” he added.
Interestingly, Noah Lyles also seemed to be content with his performance on the Jamaican track, despite claiming the gun went off before the sprinters were ready. “I was satisfied with the performance. I was disappointed in the gunman. Half of us weren’t even set before the gun went off, and that’s very disappointing to see, but overall, the race was great,” he stated.
Furthermore, while speaking about Seville’s perfomance Lyles added everyone was waiting for him to “drop something”. He now looks forward to competing with him at the Olympics 2024. “See you in Paris,” he wrote down on X.
Weeks before Paris, In both the 100-meter and 200-meter dash Lyles marquee events, many athletes seem to be upping their performances. Apart from Seville, Letsile Tebego will also be a strong contender in Paris. He is the first man to go under 20 seconds in the 200-meter dash this season, with 19.94 seconds at the ASA Grand Prix. Furthermore, on an international level, African record holder Ferdinand Omanyala will provide strong competition in the 100-meter dash as well.
Apart from these athletes, teammates Christian Coleman and Erriyon Knighton continue to showcase constant performances as well. After surpassing Noah Lyles in the 60-meter dash at the World Indoor Track Championship, Coleman surpassed Ackeem Blake to win the 100-meter race at the Xiamen Diamond League by clocking a 10.13. Also, Erriyon Knighton, who remained a strong competitor against Lyles at the 2023 Worlds, set the world’s fastest indoor season opener in 200-meters (20.21).
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