By Amy Tennery
NEW YORK, July 24 (Reuters) - Noah Lyles underlined his claim as the king of American track again on Friday, winning the 100 metres final in a world-leading 9.79 seconds at the U.S. Championships, in an "off year" in which he is still determined to put on a show.
The Olympic champion exploded out of the blocks at Icahn Stadium and his lead was never in doubt as he broke the tape 0.09 seconds ahead of Ronnie Baker, with Kenny Bednarek taking third in front of the New York crowd.
The win
saw Lyles equal his personal best set at the spine-tingling final at the Paris Games two years ago and send a message: "Just because it is an off year doesn't mean that I plan to run slow."
"I'm not even doing what I know I can do. We're not at peak. We're not at perfect technique. We're nowhere near that. So I'm going to keep asking for more," said Lyles, who also plans to run the 200m on Saturday. "Why settle for less?"
RICHARDSON, LUTKENHAUS SUPERB IN NEW YORK
The U.S. championships typically serve as a qualifying meet for the world championships or Olympics and were deprived of some of their usual drama with neither of the global showpiece events on the calendar this time around.
But fans who made the trip to New York's Randall's Island were nonetheless treated to a handful of American track's most appealing stars on Friday, with the 2023 world champion Sha'Carri Richardson making mincemeat of a diminished women's 100m field.
Richardson cruised through the semi-finals with a wind-aided 10.78 and clinched the title in 10.77, with Kayla White (10.90) and Tamari Davis (11.00) a distant second and third, and breezed past reporters nearly as quickly as she crossed the finish line.
The 17-year-old sensation Cooper Lutkenhaus won his 800m opening heat in 1:45.83, striking an optimistic tone with reporters ahead of Sunday's final.
"We executed our race honestly perfect for the first round. And you know, I felt really good at 1:45. Now it feels not so bad, so that's a really good sign," said Lutkenhaus, who won the world indoor championships over the distance earlier this year.
Wes Ferguson had the overall fastest time across all heats in 1:45.17.
The 2022 under-20 champion Roisin Willis was the fastest woman of the day over the distance, finishing in 1:59.83, while Meghan Hunter was second-quickest in 2:00.38.
Aaliyah Butler cruised through the opening stage of the women's 400m in 50.53, while her Paris Olympic 4x400 relay teammate Alexis Holmes (51.71) also advanced.
World indoor silver medallist Khaleb McRae blitzed through the first round on the men's side in 44.65, nearly half a second quicker than Chris Bailey, the next-fastest across the three heats.
The Olympic champion Quincy Hall failed to advance to Saturday's final after running a 46.47 in only his sixth start since the Paris Games, after injuries all but obliterated his 2025 season.
The men's and women's 400m finals are set for Saturday.
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by Tom Hogue)
