Olympics
EUGENE, Ore. — Looking to either side is a subtle flex in sprinting. Fractions of seconds decide races. So any break in form can be detrimental. Taking a glance, stealing a look at an opponent, is a declaration of a runner’s confidence. It’s revealing the absence of worry about losing time.
What Noah Lyles did to Kenny Bednarek on Sunday in the U.S. track and field championships? That wasn’t a flexing glance. It was an optical taunt. Non-verbal derision.
Lyles ran the final five meters or so of the 200-meter final while staring to his left directly at Bednarek. The gaze continued after he crossed the finish line in 19.63 seconds, a new world-leading time.
Noah Lyles vs. Kenny Bednarek 👀
