"This is definitely a young man’s system”- Justin Gatlin explains tough demands of doubling at World Championships for Noah Lyles and other athletes

Former American sprinter Justin Gatlin shared his thoughts on the tough demands that Noah Lyles and other track and field athletes face when aiming for a double gold medal haul at the World Championships. Gatlin, who is an Olympic champion in the 100m as well as a 4-time World Champion, said that athletes who aim to do so face extremely tough physical targets when trying to do so.

Noah Lyles himself made history by winning the gold medals in the 100m and 200m events at the World Championships in 2023, becoming the first American man to do so since Tyson Gay in 2007. Lyles will be competing in the World Championships in Tokyo next month, as he aims to do so again. He has had an impressive 2025 season so far, last competing at the Zurich Diamond League, where he became the first track athlete to win six Diamond League trophies.

On the Ready Set Go podcast, where Gatlin is a co-host, he shared his thoughts on athletes trying to win a double gold at this year's World Championships:

"If you are an athlete that's going to go out there and try to double, you have to look at the World Championship schedule from 50,000 feet up, compared to an athlete who's just looking at their event, what day it starts, how many rounds they have, and they say, 'I'm done. I just got my three rounds. I'm good.' As an individual who's doubling, you have to understand how to conserve energy, when to go hard, when to train hard, when to pull back. There's a lot that goes into it.

"I'll tell you right now, when I knew I was done doubling, it was 2016. After running the 100 and going through the first round of the 200, then getting to the semis, I was like, 'Boy, I ain't got no legs for this. It's crazy. I ain't got no legs for this.' This is definitely a young man's system. You just have a lot more energy and a lot more go when you're younger."

Justin Gatlin has also won the gold medal in two events at the World Championships, winning the 100m and 200m events at the 2005 edition.

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Noah Lyles finishes ahead of Letsile Tebogo to win record sixth Diamond League trophy

Noah Lyles at the Diamond League Final. - Source: Getty

Noah Lyles became the first track and field athlete to win six Diamond League trophies at the Zurich Diamond League finals, where he finished ahead of Letsile Tebogo in the 200m event with a time of 19.74 seconds.

The American took to Instagram to share his accomplishment:

Noah Lyles will be aiming to continue his impressive season at the World Championships next month, where he will be competing in the 200m event.