*American Olympic gold medalist Noah Lyles, who won the 100 meters at the Paris Olympics with a time of 9.79 seconds, dismissed criticism he received for his painted nails.
Soon after his victory, Lyles shared a post on X (formerly Twitter) reflecting on the challenges he has overcome to make Olympics history.
“I have Asthma, allergies, dyslexia, ADD, anxiety, and Depression,” he wrote. “But I will tell you that what you have does not define what you can become. Why Not You!”
Lyles, who is the first U.S. man to win gold in the Olympic 100 meters since Justin Gatlin in 2004, recently addressed the controversy surrounding his “ICON” nail art during the 2024 Olympics opening ceremony in an exclusive interview with Us Weekly.
“I’m a person who knows that a lot of people have different opinions and they have them for different reasons,” Lyles told the outlet. “To be honest, I’m so confident in myself that it doesn’t really matter. I think it’s funny at times.”
I Told You America I Got This! #OlympicChampion pic.twitter.com/boBOZv3650
— Noah Lyles, OLY (@LylesNoah) August 4, 2024
After winning gold at the Olympics, ESPN praised Lyles for his “powerful” message about his long-time battle with asthma, a condition he has managed since childhood.
“Asthma definitely affects kind of everything I do in terms of health, physical fitness, sometimes even emotional because if you’re emotionally fatigued, that can bring your immune system down,” Lyles told CNN in 2020.
Now, the superstar athlete has a message for his shoe sponsor, Adidas, per the AP.
“I want my own shoe,” he said.
“I want my own trainer. I’m dead serious. I want a sneaker. There ain’t no money in spikes, there’s money in sneakers. I feel like for how many medals we bring back and the notoriety we get, the fact that hasn’t happened, that’s crazy for me. I feel like that needs to happen,” Lyles added.
READ MORE FROM EURWEB.COM: W/Painted Nails Noah Lyles Clinches Gold in Thrilling Photo Finish Against Kishane Thompson at Paris Olympics | LOOK!
