Shericka Jackson and Noah Lyles both smash 200m sprint records at World Championships

(CNN.com)

It was a spectacular night of sprinting at the World Championships on Thursday as records tumbled in both the men’s and women’s 200m finals.

First, Shericka Jackson set a new national and championship record after beating Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce to gold.

The Jamaican dominated the race and won in a time of 21.45 seconds – becoming the second fastest woman of all-time behind only American Florence Griffith-Joyner.

It was shortly followed by Noah Lyles retaining his title in the men’s race and smashing the American record previously set by Michael Johnson 26 years ago.

Lyles is now the third fastest man over the distance after clocking in at 19.31 seconds.

“Today is my day. I finally got to do what I dreamed of,” Lyles said after the race. “I felt I got the best start I could possibly ask for.”

He was joined on the podium by two fellow Americans – Kenny Bednarek in second and teenager Erriyon Knighton in third – as the US became the first country to complete the clean sweep of World Championship medals in both the men’s 100m and 200m.

“It’s an immaculate feeling to be on the podium with two fellow Americans,” Lyles added.

Noah Lyles celebrates winning gold in the men's 200m final.

Noah Lyles celebrates winning gold in the men’s 200m final.Steph Chambers/Getty Images North America/Getty Images

‘Best we’ve ever seen’

While not completing the full sweep in the women’s race, Jamaica did complete the 1-2 with Jackson and Fraser-Pryce way ahead of Great Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith in third.

Johnson, who saw his record beaten by Lyles, was working as a pundit for the women’s race and said the quality was the “best we’ve ever seen.”

“I’m feeling great. I came out and put on a show,” world champion Jackson said. “The fastest woman alive, the national and championship record, I can’t complain.”

2026 NBA playoffs: Eastern Conference first-round takeaways

The 2026 playoffs are underway, and our NBA insiders have you covered for every game in the march to the Finals. Which top seeds are cruising and which could be in danger of a first-round upset? Which stars are shining and which players are breaking through on the playoff stage? As the Eastern Conference playoffs continue, here’s what matters most…

Celtics’ Jayson Tatum laments ‘unfortunate timing’ of knee injury

BOSTON — Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum said it was “unfortunate timing” that he was forced to watch Game 7 against the Philadelphia 76ers from the bench in street clothes because of left knee stiffness. Speaking a day after he missed the Celtics’ 109-100 loss in Game 7, Tatum elaborated on his comeback from last season’s torn right Achilles, along with his recent…

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Trending