Is Noah Lyles sick? Positive COVID test confirmed after wearing mask, leaving 200-meter in wheelchair

Jacob Camenker

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Is Noah Lyles sick? Positive COVID test confirmed after wearing mask, leaving 200-meter in wheelchair image

Noah Lyles entered the 200-meter dash at the 2024 Olympics as a heavy favorite to win. He was fresh off a gold medal in the 100-meter dash, and the 200-meter race was considered his best event.

But Lyles couldn't deliver on the proverbial "Double" and win gold in both races. He came in third behind Botswana's Letsile Tebogo and his USA teammate, Kenny Bednarek, after clocking a time of 19.70 seconds in the race.

Lyles couldn't celebrate his bronze medal win very long either. He congratulated Tebogo and Bednarek after crossing the finish line but then motioned to event staff that he needed water. After being handed a bottle, he went to the ground on one knee, appearing exhausted.

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The medical staff tended to him and eventually took him off the track in a wheelchair, leading many to wonder whether he was OK or if he was dealing with an illness during the event.

Here's what to know about Lyles' health after his bronze finish in the 200-meter dash.

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Is Noah Lyles sick?

Lyles' mother revealed that the USA sprinter was dealing with COVID during his 200-meter run, as detailed by NBC's Olympics broadcast. He was diagnosed with the virus two days earlier but decided to run in the event anyway.

The NBC broadcast said that Lyles' mother — Keisha Caine — was "distraught" after seeing her son taken off in a wheelchair. She was trying to find him after the race to make sure that he was OK.

Lyles spoke to reporters after he received medical attention. Clad in a mask, he revealed that he had quarantined after his diagnosis but "never considered not running."

But what's next for Lyles? He is still weighing whether he will participate in the USA's 4x100-meter relay. He told the NBC broadcast if he has to choose now, he won't run, but he isn't ruling out participating if he feels better.

Why is Noah Lyles wearing a mask?

Lyles was spotted wearing a mask before running the 200-meter dash semifinals on Wednesday, which was the first sign that the U.S. sprinter wasn't at 100 percent.

Now, track fans know that Lyles was wearing a mask because he had been diagnosed with COVID. He continued to wear the mask after running in the 200-meter race even though he wasn't seen wearing it before then.

Nonetheless, Lyles decided to run rather than opt out of the event. He still earned a bronze in the 200-meter dash — an impressive feat but also a dangerous one considering that he not only had COVID, but also asthma.

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Noah Lyles asthma

Lyles had bad asthma as a child, a fact about which he has been open. He mentioned it in a post to X (formerly Twitter) after he won the 100-meter dash and hasn't been shy about sharing his experiences with others.

In 2020, Lyles detailed to CNN that he dealt with severe asthma issues as a child. It resulted in him being homeschooled and his mother making significant changes to their home environment.

"So, about 3 to 4, all the way to about 7 years old, I was dealing with asthma and asthma attacks seriously, like in the hospital, maybe every third night; coughing fits, constantly sick because my immune system was weak," Lyles said at the time.

That's part of the reason Lyles took extra precautions during the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. He did the same by wearing his mask after catching COVID in Paris, but his decision to compete certainly couldn't have been easy considering his health and chronic condition.

Why was Noah Lyles allowed to compete with COVID?

For those wondering why Lyles was allowed to compete with COVID, the Olympics is allowing infected athletes to compete in events in 2024. The event no longer has testing requirements for the disease either.

That said, athletes who feel sick "are encouraged—though not required—to wear masks, wash their hands and avoid close contact with others," per the Scientific American. They also are granted access to single-person rooms in the Olympic Village while some countries "provide separate transportation for sick participants."

Here's a full statement from the USATF about Lyles' health situation:

Ultimately, it was Lyles' decision to run the race. He wanted to and decided to take a shot at winning gold despite dealing with the nasty virus.

Jacob Camenker

Jacob Camenker Photo

Jacob Camenker first joined The Sporting News as a fantasy football intern in 2018 after his graduation from UMass. He became a full-time employee with TSN in 2021 and now serves as a senior content producer with a particular focus on the NFL. Jacob worked at NBC Sports Boston as a content producer from 2019 to 2021. He is an avid fan of the NFL Draft and ranked 10th in FantasyPros’ Mock Draft Accuracy metric in both 2021 and 2022.