Noah Lyles issues apology over comments on Jamaica's track & field meets

Olympic champion Noah Lyles has issued a formal apology following criticism over his recent remarks about Jamaica’s track and field events.

The 100m world champion stirred controversy after comments made on the Beyond the Records podcast, where he suggested that large crowds at Jamaican track meets were primarily due to free entry.

Lyles' remarks came during a discussion with guest Vernon Norwood, who praised Jamaica’s unwavering passion for track and field, particularly in anticipation of the upcoming Grand Slam track meet in Kingston.

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"They love track in Jamaica," Norwood noted.

Lyles, however, responded with skepticism, stating, "Yes, when it's free. When the track is free. Everybody wants to talk about how great the Boys and Girls Champs is. Boys and Girls Champs is free. Have you ever seen the crowd at their national championships? That back row, actually almost beside the home stretch—none of that is full."

His comments were met with swift backlash from Jamaicans, who pointed out that the Boys and Girls Championships is not, in fact, free to attend.

Many took to social media to correct the American sprinter, emphasizing the event’s paid ticketing system and the immense cultural significance of the championships in Jamaica.

Recognizing his mistake, Lyles issued an apology via a video message.

“Hey, everybody. I'm Noah Lyles from Beyond the Records podcast. And today, we released a video where we talked about Grand Slam and Boys and Girls Championship in Jamaica. And unfortunately, I did make a comment that provided misinformation. I said that Boys and Girls Champs was free to attend and thankfully, the community informed me that that is not the case," acknowledged Lyles.

"I'm sorry that I spread this misinformation. It was never my job to mislead. It's just that I didn’t fact-check enough, and I'm trying to, you know, grow from this moment. But, thank you to everybody for informing me, and thanks for watching the video. And I'll see you guys in the next one,” he added.

Lyles’ relationship with Jamaican fans has been contentious, with tensions even spilling into his personal life with his Jamaican fiancée, Junelle Bromfield.

One of the most heated moments came during the 2024 Paris Olympics when Lyles narrowly edged out Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson in the 100m final. Both athletes clocked 9.79 seconds, but Lyles secured the victory by mere milliseconds, leading to outrage among Jamaican fans who felt Thompson had been unfairly denied gold.