Covid-stricken Noah Lyles missed out on an Olympic sprint double after falling short in the men’s 200m final in Paris, with Letsile Tebogo of Botswana taking gold and American Kenny Bednarek snapping up silver.
The world champion at the distance was hoping become the first man since Usain Bolt at the Rio 2016 Games to secure both the 100m and 200m titles.
He had managed to bounce back to win 100m gold in Paris, but this time could not compensate for what was again the slowest reaction time of the pack.
After the race Lyles fell to his back after the loss and eventually sat up to be tended to by medics who rushed out onto the track.
He was placed in a wheelchair suffering with what was reported to be a case of Covid-19.
Tebogo led wire-to-wire and won in 19.46 seconds, the fourth-fastest time in history.
“I’m the Olympic champion, it’s something I have never seen in my life or dreamt of – it is an amazing moment,” the 21-year-old Tebogo said.
“I just came here with the little that I had in me to push through because yesterday we made it to the final, my coach told me ‘now it’s your race’.
“I knew when the gun went Kenny was going to run away so make sure just to close him down, I have that top end speed that will allow me to finish the race without getting tired, so that’s what I did, and when I saw Kenny fade I knew Noah was far, far away behind us so that means I’m the Olympic champion.
“It means a lot for everybody, the country, the continent and my family.”
Bednarek, who also won silver in Tokyo, finished in 19.62 and Lyles, four nights after winning an epic 100m, ran the curve in 19.70.
Lyles was slowest off the blocks in 0.173 seconds but had clawed his way up to third by the 20- metre mark and remained in bronze medal position for the rest of the race, finishing in 19.70.
Tebogo and Bednarek battled for their positions, the American holding the lead just after the halfway point, but it was the Botswanan’s race to lose from the 120 metres mark and he never looked close to letting go.
Lyles, who was also issued a yellow card for breaking his starting block, was whisked away to a medical consultation after the race and did not stop to speak to media.
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