The men’s 100-meter dash is a highlight of each Summer Olympics. The victor receives the prestigious gold medal and the title of “World’s Fastest Man,” which is both an informal and highly sought-after accolade.
Some of track and field’s all-time best sprinters include Usain Bolt, Maurice Greene, Jesse Owens, and Carl Lewis.
A total of six major world championships and two Olympics have passed since Bolt last competed for the gold medal, with the 2024 final taking place on August 4 in Paris.
As he smashed record after record for over a decade, the unparalleled and almost indestructible Jamaican made it clear that he was the greatest.
The title of “World’s Fastest Man” was thrown about like a hot potato eight years after Bolt’s Olympic goodbye.
After four World Championships and the Tokyo Olympics without a repeat champion, the search for a new dominant sprinting force still needs to be done.
The “Bolt successor” may be the colourful and entertaining American sensation Noah Lyles.
His abilities at 100 meters are only now being shown, despite being the third-fastest of all time and a three-time world champion in the 200-meter event.
While Lyles is heavily favoured to win gold in his hallmark event—the 100-meter dash—at the Olympics (he hasn’t lost in three years), it’s by no means specific that he will repeat as the world and US champion in the 100-meter dash.
This is not an attack on Lyles but demonstrates the outstanding international standard of the sprints.
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There is a narrow margin between the best sprinters, the floor is higher, and the Olympic qualifying time is precisely 10 seconds.
To earn his first 100-meter gold, Lyles ran a personal best of 9.83 seconds and closed with his signature hard effort.
He may need to go even faster in Paris due to the high-quality competition he will shortly face.
Let’s not limit ourselves to only Lyles and examine the other potential contenders in the field.
Oblique Seville and Kishane Thompson: Jamaica’s brightest future stars
The rivalry between the United States and Jamaica will undoubtedly continue.
There has been a long wait for a Jamaican guy to win a 100-meter medal at the World Championships or the Olympics since Bolt, but that might change this year.
Oblique Seville, a 23-year-old who has been fourth in the last two World Championships, defeated Noah Lyles last month in Jamaica with a personal best of 9.82.
Seville is a promising young Jamaican athlete mentored by Bolt’s former coach, Glen Mills. Another 23-year-old national hero has just come to light as a formidable candidate for the Olympic gold medal.
At Jamaica’s Olympic trials in 2023, Kishane Thompson—who had a pair of outstanding Diamond League races towards the close of the year—raised eyebrows by defeating Seville with a blistering 9.77, becoming the first Jamaican to go sub 9.8 since Bolt’s thrilling 2015 world championship victory over Justin Gatlin.
Even though Thompson hadn’t raced all season, his 9.82 in qualifying for the first round led to an encounter with doping control inspectors.
A calm “Alright, nice” came from Noah Lyles in response to news of Thompson’s performance. I hope he maintains his health. Although Thompson has a history of injuries, he is now fit and looking fantastic.
During a competition in Hungary in early July, Thompson easily defeated a strong field, making 9.91 seem smooth as he eased up just before crossing the finish line.
Based on his success in the Jamaican trials, Thompson poses a severe challenge to Lyles and the other competitors in his first world championship, but he still has much to show.
Team Jamaica also has Ackeem Blake, a 22-year-old, who is competing with Thompson and Seville.
Even though he can run a 9.89 at his best, he is considered an outsider unless he proves differently due to his erratic performances.
American Fred Kerley, a former world champion
The 2022 world champion is the most adaptable sprinter competing here.
Kerley, a solidly built athlete who stands at 6 feet 3 inches and weighs more than 200 pounds, is one of only three men in history to complete the triple jump in sub forty-four seconds, twenty seconds, and ten seconds, respectively.
He won silver at the most recent Olympics, and his personal best of 9.76 places him tied for sixth fastest of all time.
After an unexpected exit in the World Championship quarterfinals last year, Kerley got off to a shaky start in 2024.
He had severed his connections with Asics and had not raced in his last appearance before the Olympic trials.
Still, come trial time, the Texan put his naysayers to rest by claiming Team USA’s third and last slot, excluding Christian Coleman, the 2019 world champion.
If Kerley is now at his peak performance, he has every reason to think he can turn his silver medal from Tokyo into a gold medal from Paris. After all, peak performance is the key to success in competitive racing.
Italian Marcell Jacobs, the current Olympic champion
Do you remember him? Most likely, you won’t. Italian-American Lamont Marcell Jacobs had no sub-10-second races under his belt before the year 2021 began.
At year’s end, he stunned everyone by qualifying for the Olympic final and firing three personal bests.
Due in part to a chronic sciatic nerve problem, which curtailed Jacobs’ racing schedule and caused him to perform poorly, he has not regained that level worldwide.
After winning the Olympic gold medal in 2016, he has yet to race in sub 9.9 seconds since, and he didn’t even make it to the finals of the 2022 or 2023 World Championships.
Jacobs is making great strides with her recent 9.92 at a meet in Finland and her recent victory at the European Championship in Rome.
The adjustments in his lifestyle and coaching are putting him on the right track, but he still needs a little more to reach the final, much alone repeat.
Letsile Tebogo of Botswana is the shining light of Africa.
In 2022, Tebogo, a former soccer player, became famous for his 9.91-second world under-20 record run, during which he showboated his way to victory.
At last year’s World Championships, he competed in the 100-meter dash and finished second behind Lyles. He also won bronze in the 200-meter dash.
The 21-year-old’s mother passed away in May, so he is going into his first Olympics with a broken heart.
The inherent brilliance and untapped potential of Tebogo are undeniable. If he keeps improving, Tebogo has the potential to challenge Noah Lyles in the 100 and 200 meters in the future.
Next month, Botswana may perhaps welcome its first Olympic gold medalist.
