Below is an excerpt from the Lap Count newsletter, posted with permission. Kyle Merber’s Lap Count newsletter both entertains and enlightens fans about athletes and happenings in our sport.
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From the Lap Count Newsletter
Over the roar of the non-haters in the crowd, you could hardly hear the peanut gallery chant of “indoor doesn’t matter!” this weekend at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix. That’s because the most important race of the sold-out meet at the TRACK was the men’s 60m and it came with a hell of an implication!
Okay, well it also came with a time. And if you’re putting this time up against Christian Coleman’s world record from 2018 of 6.34 then maybe Noah Lyles’s mark from this weekend doesn’t jump out at you too much.
But there’s a reason Lyles was celebrating so much and it’s not just because he’s a showman who understands it’s his job to fill those seats. (Surely anyone wearing a New Balance corporate office lanyard did not appreciate that an Adidas athlete was yelling that they were now in “his house!”) But if Lyles is running 6.51 and beating Trayvon Bromell today, then there is something special on the horizon.
Noah is not known for his start – historically he’s a closer. His last fifty of the 200m looks like he’s pressed down on the NOS button. On the other hand, Bromell is known for his start – he is twice a World Championship bronze medalist in the 100m and the 2016 World Champion in the 60m. Watch the race and it’s quite clear who is out ahead the first 30 meters, which would have always been the case, except now Noah is close enough that it matters.
Ultimately, they both ran 6.51. Lyles is now tied for the 61st-fastest runner of all time in the event. That doesn’t feel super notable for an athlete of Lyles’s prowess. However, to understand the gravity of that 6.51, we need to look at it in the context of his previous performances, personal bests, and what they led to:
- In 2017, Noah ran 6.63 and later that year ran 19.90 for 200m.
- In 2018, Noah ran 6.57 and later that year ran 19.65 for 200m.
- In 2022, Noah ran 6.55 and later that year ran 19.31 to win the World Championship 200m in an American Record.
I didn’t write the book on statistical progressions, but Lyles celebrating his race is starting to make a little more sense to me! And it justifies the speculation over whether this is the year somebody gives Usain Bolt’s 200m record of 19.19 a scare.
This is not an accident and is all part of Lyles’s coach, Lance Brauman’s, plan. After the race, Brauman told us that if Lyles is going to break 19.19 then he is going to have to become a 9.7 guy to do it. Accordingly, last year his start became the focus of his indoor season. He ran the 60m at three different meets, and this season he is set to do at least that many.
Couple all of this with the fact that Noah has said on record many times that he is targeting the 100m/200m World Championship double, which previously may have seemed like a reach. And sure, that may be big talk for a guy who finished 7th at the 2021 Olympic Trials, even if he has a 9.86 100m best. But if he is within striking distance of the Fred Kerleys and Marcell Jacobses of the world with 40 meters left to run, then suddenly impossible is nothing.
In his season opener earlier this year, Lyles ran 6.61 and got beat by two athletes so he’s already showing a nice improvement curve. Next week at Millrose he goes up against Christian Coleman and Ronnie Baker.
Yet again, this isn’t about the 60m – it’s about the big picture, namely scratching off Usain Bolt’s name from the record board and becoming the undisputed fastest man in the world. And this is why indoor track matters – it sets the stage for the main act, and unlike in most other sports, with track, we get to witness the world’s best taking chances and actively improving their craft during the “offseason.”
