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Noah Lyles competing for an Olympic Medal during the Men's 200 meters final despite his covid diagnosis has been criticized by many, but there are still those who understand where he is coming from. Enter Justin Gatlin, the track & field star from the previous generation who retired as an Olympic athlete during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. During his career, Gatlin shared the stage with none other than Usain Bolt, the fastest man in history. Although he won the 100m Gold Medal in Athens, Bolt became dominant for an entire decade but Gatlin returned to won Silver at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games. He completely understand the reason Noah Lyles decided to compete despite putting other competitors in danger of getting infected with Covid.
Justin Gatlin defends Noah Lyles from critics
Gatlin wanted to come out to speak up against the criticism Noah Lyles has been getting for the way in which everything happened. Although he also understands the gravity of putting others at risk with Covid, Gatlin still took Lyles' side. He spoke to the folks at TMZ Sports, saying: "This is an Olympic dream you have, man. I've had a family member who has passed from COVID. This is something that I think with Noah. Nothing was going to stop him from getting to that starting line and trying to give this all his best. This is not like the NBA Finals where it happens every year. Or the Super Bowl where it happens every year. It's never a, 'Well, you'll get 'em next time!'"
Noah Lyles just announced he wouldn't be competing in the rest of the track & field events and missed the 4x100 final where his teammates didn't even make the podium. The 100m Gold Medal winner is still young and he is expected to be a driving force in Team USA during the upcoming 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games. To Gatlin's point, a lot can happen in the next four years and Noah Lyles didn't want to miss out on competing for a medal despite his illness. As we said before, Noah Lyles had 104 degrees Farenheit fever and he still won the bronze medal during that final. That alone proves how bad he wanted to win.