Sawt Falasteen - 'Show pony' Lyles ready to take on 'quarter horse' Norman

Lyles claimed gold in the 200m in Eugene, Oregon, in 19.31 seconds, the third best of all time, while Norman triumphed in the 400m.

The latter, however, is a gifted all-rounder capable of also competing in the 100 and 200m sprints, and is one of only three men along with South African Wayde Van Niekerk and fellow American Fred Kerley to go sub-10 seconds in 100m, sub-20 in 200m and sub-44 in 400m.

But Lyles warned the Monaco debutant, a former roommate at the 2016 world juniors, that he had form at the Stade Louis II.

"I always run fast here," Lyles told journalists on Tuesday.

"The name Lyles has good luck here, me and my brother (Josephus) were 1-2 here in 2020."

Having come so close to challenging Usain Bolt's world record of 19.19sec set back at the 2009 world championships in Berlin, Lyles acknowledged he had but one thing on his mind.

"What would I be happy with? The world record!" he said. "Every time I step on the track my goal is to get closer to the world record.

"I'm never going to be satisfied, I'm always looking for more.

"Yes, I ran 19.31 at the worlds, the third fastest time, but I expected to do that!

"What's the point of coming out for end of season and running slow times?! I want to shock myself.

"Winning world gold means a weight is lifted off me, but I love running, that's my true passion."

- 'Give me $2 million!' -

Lyles also poured cold water on the chances of him competing in the 400m, as a grinning Norman looked on.

"I'll run the 400m for $2 million!" Lyles said. "As my brother puts it, there are quarter horses and show ponies and all I know is that show ponies make a lot more money than quarter horse!" Lyles said.

But he admitted that he loved his rivalry with Norman, which dates back to high school competition.

"This is the guy I don't get to see very often," he said. "Everyone talks about Erriyon (Knight as main rival), but this is the one I want.

"It's 1-1 (over 200m as professionals), so we'll make it the best of three, and then the best of five!"

Norman retorted: "The tally will keep going until one of us retires.

"On this pro level, we're re-lighting the fire," he added, the pair having last met on the track at the Rome Diamond League in 2019 with Norman winning in an impressive 19.70sec.

Norman hailed Lyles for "elevating the 200m", adding that he, too, had been relieved by his gold in Eugene, saying he was now competing with "no pressure, no expectation".

"The world title ticked one of the many boxes I have," he said. "Now I can enjoy the rest of the season and run free."

Norman warned that he was "in the best shape of my life in terms of strength but I haven't sprinted for a while.

"I think it's going to be a super-hot 200m race tomorrow."

X.Habash--SF-PST