Noah Lyles expressed his thoughts about competing in the 2025 US National Track and Field Championships. The American athlete expressed his desire to compete in the 200m and put forward strong performances with the intention of defending his title as he geared up for the World Athletics Championships in September this year.Lyles won the gold medal in both the 100m and the 200m at the World Athletics Championships in 2023. As the reigning champion in both events, Noah Lyles received a bye for the 2025 edition of the World Athletics Championships, which meant that he would automatically qualify to compete in the biggest track event of the year without competing at the US National Championships.Despite having a bye for the World Championships, Noah Lyles weighed in on competing at the US Nationals during a press conference at the London Diamond League. The American athlete shared that he is planning to compete in the 200m and will be running in every round. He expressed his desire to defend his title in his favorite event rather than giving it away without participating.“We’re going to actually go to the USAs and we’re planning to run 200s. We’re going to run every round. I’m still the national champion in that event. I don’t believe in giving up titles. I earned that title, and someone needs to take it from me if they want it," he said.Furthermore, he stressed the importance of preparing through every round and competing against a great line-up of athletes to be able to improve with every appearance."So, going in there and preparing throughout every round and treating it like practice, and again, you need great competition and you need a great stage and utilizing that to the best of our ability," he added.Noah Lyles on having a bye at the US National ChampionshipsNoah Lyles competes in Athletics - Olympic Games Paris 2024: Day 8 - Source: GettyNoah Lyles spoke about having a bye at the US National Championships in an interview at the Prefontaine Classic. The Olympic gold medalist shared that having a bye makes it less stressful for him as he navigates his journey through the 2025 outdoor season, leading up to the World Athletics Championships.Lyles expressed how the bye allows him to experiment with his race tactics as he prepares to defend his title at the World Championships later this year.“I have a bye for the US Trials, which makes it less stressful because it gives us the time to work on the races. It gives us time to see what works and what doesn’t and to be able to make moves from there," he said.The American athlete shared that his aim in the season is to successfully defend his titles in both the 100m and the 200m at the World Athletics Championships.