US sprint star Noah Lyles has withdrawn from Friday’s Monaco Diamond League meeting to fine-tune his preparations for the Paris Olympics, his management team announced on Wednesday. Lyles, the reigning world champion in the 100m and 200m, was scheduled to run in the 200m at Friday’s meeting at the Stade Louis II in Monaco.
However, the 26-year-old stated that he has chosen to stay at his training camp in Florida for additional preparation as he aims for a 100m-200m double at the Olympics.
“I’m sorry to announce that I’ve withdrawn from this Friday’s Meeting Herculis EBS in Monaco,” Lyles said in a statement. “My coach, my entire team, and I are very pleased with what we achieved at the US Olympic Trials in Eugene. However, to put myself in the best possible position to succeed in Paris, we have decided to spend an extra week at our training base in Florida before traveling to Europe. I’ll miss competing there on Friday, but I look forward to returning to race in Monaco next year.”
Lyles is the favorite for the 200m at the Olympics and holds the fastest time in the world over the distance this season with a leading time of 19.53 seconds, set at the US Olympic trials last month. He is the fourth fastest over the 100m this year, with a best time of 9.83 seconds, also set at the US trials.
