NFL player says he'd beat Noah Lyles in a race

Noah Lyles has faced a challenging week in the media, especially after winning bronze in the men’s 200m at the 2024 Paris Olympics and attributing his loss of the gold (and silver) to contracting COVID-19. (Many found this unconvincing.) One of his critics is NFL wide receiver Tyreek Hill, who didn’t hold back on his opinion of Lyles’ abilities, confidently stating that he could beat the new Olympic 100m champion in a race.

During a pre-season interview on YouTube’s Up and Adams Show, Hill shared his thoughts on Lyles: “Noah Lyles can’t say anything after what just happened to him. For him to lose like that and still say we’re not world champions in our sport? Come on, bruh. Just stick to what you know, and that’s track.”

Hill went on to say he would beat Lyles in a race (although he did not specify the distance). “I wouldn’t beat him by a lot, but I would beat Noah Lyles.”

Hill, who goes by the nickname “Cheetah,” is renowned for being one of the fastest players in professional football. While his focus has been on football for most of his life, he comes from a track and field background. Hill represented Team USA at the 2012 World Junior Championships in Barcelona, winning gold in the men’s 4x100m relay and bronze in the 200m (20.54).

Although Hill hasn’t made a return to track and field since, he did race over 60 metres at the 2023 USATF Masters Indoor Championships, clocking 6.70 seconds. His time ranked him 213th in the world for the men’s 60m event last year. In contrast, Lyles won a world championship silver medal in the 60m at the 2024 World Indoor Championships in Glasgow, with a time of 6.44 seconds—trailing only American Christian Coleman, the world record holder in the 60m event.

Hill has admitted in multiple interviews that he doesn’t plan to return to track anytime soon, making a showdown with Lyles unlikely. Even so, the numbers speak for themselves: Lyles’ 100m winning time of 9.79 seconds in Paris is half a second faster than Hill’s personal best of 10.19 seconds. While Hill’s times are impressive for someone not competing professionally, the likelihood of him beating Lyles without a few years of focused training seems slim.

posted Sunday August 18th
by Running Magazine