Lyles, Bednarek throw down at US nationals

Noah Lyles landed the day's biggest blow on the track, passing Kenny Bednarek for the win, but not before looking his way to talk some trash.

Bednarek's answer was a two-handed shove in the back after the finish line, some more heated words and a challenge for a rematch that can't come soon enough.

The pair's shoving and shouting match came during the US track championships at the end of a hotly contested 200m final at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, on Sunday.

"Like I've said before, Noah's going to be Noah," Bednarek said. "If he wants to stare me down, that's fine."

Lyles reeled in Bednarek and crossed in 19.63 seconds for a 0.04-second victory that sets up a rematch at world championships on Sept 19 in Tokyo.

The best action in Round 1 came after the finish line.

There was jawing, the shove and, then, Lyles turning around, backpedaling, reaching his arms out and bouncing up and down like a boxer before lobbing a few more choice words at Bednarek.

Their argument bled into the start of what is normally a celebratory NBC winner's interview.

"I tell ya, if you've got a problem, I expect a call," Bednarek said, as the network's Lewis Johnson moved the mic between the feuding runners.

Lyles replied: "You know what? You're right. You're right. Let's talk after this."

Though they shook hands during that tense post-race interview, Bednarek was fired up well after the sprinters had left the track.

"The summary is, don't do that to me," he said.

"I don't do any of that stuff. It's not good character right there. That's pretty much it. At the end of the day, he won the race. I've got to give him props. He was the better man today."

The win itself was no big surprise for Lyles, the three-time defending world champion who will have to get past Bednarek to make it four in Tokyo. Bednarek was asked what Lyles said as he turned around and gloated after securing his fifth national title at his favorite distance.

"What he said didn't matter, it's just what he did," Bednarek said. "Unsportsmanlike shit and I don't deal with that. It's a respect factor.

"He's fresh. Last time we lined it up, I beat him, that's all I can say. Next time we line up, I'm going to win. That's all that matters."

Asked to expand on his role in the tiff, Lyles was less forthcoming: "On coach's orders, no comment."

As is common in a year after the Olympics — and in an era after Usain Bolt — track is a sport desperately in need of some energy. Who else to provide it than Lyles? On the men's side of US track, he's arguably the sport's most engaging character.

Up to now, track media and the runners themselves have tried to generate rivalries between Lyles and Erriyon Knighton (who's currently appealing a doping violation), or Lyles and Botswana's Letsile Tebogo (whom Lyles beat in the Olympics last year), or even between Lyles and NFL receiver Tyreek Hill (a supposed grudge match never took place).

Turns out, they probably should have looked at the lane next to him. Bednarek has won silver and beaten Lyles the last two times they've lined up in the 200m at the Olympics, even though Lyles has had issues at both — in Tokyo with his mental health, then in Paris with COVID.

Bednarek referenced some long-simmering issues between the two.

"Just some personal stuff we've got to handle," he said.

But, when asked for something, anything, about this burgeoning rivalry, Lyles demurred, instead focusing on what a difficult year this has been for him after an injury in April kept him out of spikes until June.

"If they ain't gonna beat me now, they ain't gonna beat me ever," Lyles said. Bednarek isn't so sure of that.

The 200m final was Bednarek's fifth race of the week, counting the three heats of the 100m, the final of which he won on Friday.

Lyles, who has an automatic spot at the worlds in that event as the defending champion, only ran one heat of the 100m.

"We'll go fresh and we'll see what happens," Bednarek said. "Because I'm very confident I can beat him. That's all I can say."

On the women's side, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden won the 200m in a personal-best time of 21.84 seconds, while Olympic champion Gabby Thomas had to wait a few anxious moments to see if she earned a spot on the worlds team. Her named popped up in third place, putting her on the plane.

It was a winning weekend for Jefferson-Wooden, who also captured the 100m on Friday. She will be joined in the event at the worlds by Sha'Carri Richardson, who has an automatic spot as the defending champion. However, Richardson, who didn't advance to the 200m final, has again found herself in the headlines for her offtrack activities after being arrested on Sunday for allegedly assaulting her boyfriend.

One of the afternoon's most exciting finishes was in the men's 800m, where 2019 world champion Donavan Brazier used a strong kick to hold off 16-year-old Cooper Lutkenhaus and Bryce Hoppel.

In the 5,000m, Shelby Houlihan held off Elise Cranny by less than a second to win the title. Houlihan returned this year after serving a four-year doping ban for testing positive after eating a burrito she claimed was tainted with a performance-enhancing drug.

Agencies Via Xinhua