“Hats Off”: Justin Gatlin Congratulates Noah Lyles on 100M Olympic Gold at Paris Olympics With Special Gesture

“Hats off to Noah, literally,” Justin Gatlin congratulated Noah Lyles on his Ready Set Go podcast on YouTube, showing plenty of respect. He recounted how, throughout the season and all of the races leading up to the Paris Olympics, he had only seen Lyles receive harsh criticism from numerous skeptics.

Whether it was the 200 meters or the 100 meters, the 27-year-old consistently proved his critics wrong. The retired four-time world champion also mentioned an intriguing aspect that the athlete had, and how he always puts on a show off-track, before and after meets.

“Regardless of how you operate, how you get it done. Yu-Gi-Oh cards, briefcase, Formula 1 racing outfit, you doing it the way you want to do it, and how the way you do it is getting it done, and that’s all that matters.”

All of his antics, such as pulling out a Yu-Gi-Oh card or wearing flashy apparel, allowed him to become much more than just a track and field competitor.

However, regardless of how he demonstrated his interests in other subjects, Lyles always made it a point to finish first whenever possible, and that is what set him apart this year.

“Applause to you, man. Congratulations on your gold! You deserved it, you earned it, you backed up every word constantly all year long, not just this year, the year before, and so on. Sky is the limit, bro, and that’s what it is.”

The four-time world champion was simply amazed by the newly crowned 100-meter Olympic winner and was well aware of the athlete’s struggles to reach the top of track and field.

Apart from Lyles, Gatlin also praised Fred Kerley, who won the bronze medal in the 100-meter sprint finals at the Paris Olympics.

Gatlin pointed out how Kerley had faced numerous challenges leading up to the coveted event, including splitting ties with his main sponsor, ASICS, going through several coach changes, and various other circumstances that raised concerns about the athlete’s future.

Back-to-back Olympics on the podium for Fred Kerley as he wins BRONZE in the men’s 100m! #ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/BrWEOHlNHA

— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 4, 2024

Despite everything going wrong, Gatlin stated that if anyone could come out of such a situation, it was Kerley himself, and he proved it when he earned the 100-meter Olympic bronze medal.