Tebogo stuns Lyles to land.200m gold for his late mum

So lightning does not strike twice. Noah Lyles stormed from behind to win gold in the 100m on Sunday night but was given no chance to do so in the 200m final, won by Botswana's Letsile Tebogo in a major upset at the Stade de France.

- JAMIE BRAIDWOOD

Tebogo had time to thump his chest as he crossed the line in a new personal best of 19.46 seconds, ahead of the USA’s Kenny Bednarek and with Lyles in third, a bronze adding to his 100m gold.

For Lyles, the dream of emulating Usain Bolt and winning both 100m and 200m titles at the Olympics did not materialise. It may have been over before the race, with the 27-year-old leaving the track in a wheelchair to alert suspicions that he was suffering from an illness. Within moments, US track and field officials confirmed Lyles had tested positive for Covid before the race but ran anyway. He was around half a second down on his personal best.

But even a fit and firing Lyles may have been powerless to stop Tebogo. The 21-year-old won Botswana’s first gold medal at the Olympics and dedicated a dominant victory to his mother, who died in May. After crossing the line, Tebogo removed one of his orange spikes and held it up to the camera, revealing that they were adorned with the date of his mother’s birthday.