Track and field isn’t just about beating your competitors and asserting your supremacy; it’s also about looking after your rivals and other athletes when they deserve it. In Netflix’s docuseries ‘Sprint,’ episode 6, “The Double Is Alive,” a tearful Noah Lyles attends the medal ceremony following the 100-meter sprint finals, where he won the gold medal. The athlete couldn’t keep his emotions together and was quickly assisted by his fellow podium finisher, Zharnel Hughes.
There have been numerous track meets in which American and British athletes competed on the track. Despite their tremendous rivalry, they were observed giving hugs and encouraging each other to push themselves beyond their boundaries. Nobody expected Lyles to become a 100-meter world champion, but he did so through hard work, pushing Letsile Tebogo in second and Zharnel in third place.
All of his efforts were on full display, and during the United States national anthem at the medal ceremony, the audience saw a teary Noah Lyles wearing the gold medal, which he remembered with a message of gratitude to his fellow sprinter, Zharnel, saying:
“Wow, I can’t make it through the whole national anthem. This just has to be all the stress that I was putting on myself to get to this moment. If Zharnel didn’t come up and hug me, I would have easily fell to my knees.”
Noah was under a lot of mental strain because of the criticism he faced while competing in the 100 meters. He is known as a 200-meter runner, but owing to his efforts, he was finally able to win the 100-meter title that he had hoped for.
The episode also shows the audience, a backstage moment of the two sportsmen discussing all of the challenges that they had to overcome to get to where they are now. The entire scenario felt like the Brit was returning a favor to the American athlete, as he was assisted by him shortly after ending Great Britain’s 20-year medal drought.
Noah Lyles Offers Words of Motivation to Zharnel Hughes
The 2023 World Championships came to an intriguing end in the 100-meter sprint because of the absence of reigning world champion Fred Kerley, who was eliminated in the semi-finals. The track world was excited to witness a new champion, but the entire grid was highly competitive, making it difficult to decide or forecast any probable conclusion.
Despite a poor start, Noah Lyles rebounded with incredible speed and crossed Botswanan rival Letsile Tebogo to win the race with a 9.83. Tebogo finished second with a 9.88, while Zharnel Hughes finished third with the same time.
The British athlete was taken aback by his bronze medal and couldn’t believe he was holding a World Championship medal. He was also moved to tears since, with this accomplishment, he ended Great Britain’s 20-year medal drought. Lyles, his American rival, quickly hugged Zharnel and happily screamed at him to always believe in himself and never give up. The Brit also repeated the same lines to boost the moment, which was a sight to behold for the track world.
