After a tightly contested 200m final, Noah Lyles and Kenny Bednarek had a physical altercation post-race. Lyles won narrowly with a time of 19.63 seconds, leading to tension between the two athletes. Their confrontation included shoves and verbal exchanges, with Bednarek expressing dissatisfaction with Lyles' behavior. Although they shook hands during an interview, Bednarek conveyed his feelings of unsportsmanlike conduct. Lyles, a three-time defending world champion, is set for a rematch against Bednarek at the upcoming world championships in Tokyo, where tensions are expected to rise again.
There was jawing, the shove and, then, Lyles turning around, backpedaling, reaching his arms out and bouncing up and down like a boxer before lobbing a few more choice words at Bednarek.
Though they shook hands during the interview, Bednarek was fired up well after the sprinters had left the track. The summary is, don't do that to me, he said.
It's unsportsmanlike and I don't deal with that. It's a respect factor. He's fresh. Last time we lined it up, I beat him, that's all I can say.
Bednarek responded that Lyles' actions were unsportsmanlike while still acknowledging Lyles as the better runner on that day.
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