Noah Lyles won gold in the men’s 100m final Sunday in a historically close race.
He defeated Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson by 0.005 of a second, marking the closest men’s 100m race at the Olympics since 1980, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
The news of his gold medal victory took roughly half a minute to confirm as the race ended. Once it was official, Lyles reacted by lifting his bib and yelling: “America. I told you, I got this.”
Lyles said there were few celebrations during his gold medal night. He spent it speaking with media, fulfilling a mandatory postrace drug test, and slipping into boyfriend mode.
Monday marks the two-year anniversary for Lyles and his girlfriend, Jamaican 400-meter runner Junelle Bromfield, Lyles said. While he admits owing her a real vacation after the Olympics, he conducted an important act of chivalry in the wee hours Monday morning.
Around 2 a.m. Paris time, Lyles said Bromfield let him know she had accidentally left her running spikes at their massage therapist’s Airbnb near the Olympic Village. Since she was running her first races of the Olympics later Monday morning, it was imperative she get those spikes.
“So here I am at 2 a.m., waddling with a spike bag, my bag and some toiletries, and I’m like, ‘Huh. Here I am, Olympics champion, 100 meters, waddling to my girlfriend’s room with all this stuff,'” Lyles said, laughing.
“I’m a good boyfriend.”
Bromfield finished third in her heat, qualifying for the women’s 400m semifinals on Wednesday. Lyles himself won his heat in the first round of the men’s 200m, also qualifying for the semifinals.