Noah Lyles and Sha'Carri Richardson win 100-meter titles at U.S. championships

Noah Lyles and Sha'Carri Richardson both won their third 100-meter national title on Friday.

First, Richardson stormed through the field with a time of 10.77 seconds, matching her best time since throwing down a 10.71 at the U.S. Olympic trials in 2024. Then Lyles similarly surged to the win in 9.79 seconds, matching the career-best time that won him Olympic gold in Paris.

It was a cathartic day for the two American sprinters who found success in Paris two years ago but have struggled to maintain that level in the time since. They presented their breakthroughs in vastly different ways.

For Richardson, it was the culmination of a lengthy effort to get in a better place, via her interview with NBC Sports:

"It just feels phenomenal to be back in a better place — healthy mentally, physically, emotionally. And it shows that hard work pays off. Everything me and coach [Dennis Mitchell] have been working on is starting to show consistently."

Lyles, meanwhile, cut a wrestling-style promo about how this is nothing compared to what he has planned in the coming two years:

"Shoot, I was just playing around this year. I'm scared for you all next year. I'm real scared, because you're not going to have this nice Noah who goes around and just thinks it's all lollygagging and good. Next year, I got plans. I got places to run fast. So you better pray, go to sleep and don't get scared when I run up on you."

Lyles' time is the new world's best in 2026, surpassing Jamaican rival Oblique Seville's 9.82 last month. It's a reversal from last year's world championships, when he finished third behind Seville and Paris silver medalist Kishane Thompson.

He started behind in this race, with 2019 world champion Christian Coleman moving a step ahead of him off the blocks. As Lyles did in Paris, he finished strong and took gold. And made sure everyone knew how he did it:

"In my head, the distance was already made up. I put my hand in their pocket. Don't let them get away. I saw where Christian was and I said 'I'll get my hands all the way in there.’ And I just pulled them back and I did what I do."

Richardson, the 2024 Olympic silver medalist, dealt with an unspecified injury in 2025 and wound up finishing only fifth in the world championships with a season-best 10.94 seconds. She has already bested that mark five times in 2026.