TOKYO (AP) — Noah Lyles had a simple message about his favorite race, the 200 meters.
“I don't plan to lose,” he said.
Anyone who calls that brash, arrogant or unsportsmanlike would fit right in with the sprinters trying to prove him wrong at world championships this week.
There's been a lot of chirping, some shoving and at least one not-well-received glare over the past year in sprinting's longer and sometimes less-appreciated race. The 200 meters has become a three-man drama between Lyles, the three-time defending world champion, along with his American counterpart Kenny Bednarek and Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo.
Opening heats for the 200 start Wednesday, with the title being settled Friday. Though all three runners were in the 100, it's the 200 that's their specialty and that h