Eugene: World champion Noah Lyles schooled youngster Erriyon Knighton in winning the men’s 200m in 19.67sec at the US athletics championships on Sunday.
The 18-year-old Knighton, who stunned the athletics world with a time of 19.49sec in May, held a commanding lead coming off the curve but Lyles remorselessly chased him down, playfully pointing a finger in Knighton’s direction as they barrelled across the line.
“I do what it takes to win,” said Lyles - who insisted he was pointing not at Knighton but at the clock. “Erriyon got the best of me on the turn - I wasn’t worried about it. I said I’m going to catch him. I’m going to take the rest of this 100 and that’s what I did.”
Knighton finished second in 19.69 and Fred Kerley, who posted times of 9.76 and 9.77 on the way to a 100m victory on Friday, was third in 19.83 to nab the third berth for the World Championships, which will be held on the same Hayward Field track in Eugene on July 15-24.
Abby Steiner continued her upward trajectory in the women’s 200m, improving her own world-leading time with a victory in 21.77sec.
Two hours earlier, Steiner had matched the previous world-leading time of 21.80 in the semi-finals as she continues to shine in a season that saw her claim the NCAA collegiate title this month.
Tamara Clark set the early pace but finished second in 21.92 while Jenna Prandini was third in 22.01.
Tokyo bronze medallist Gabby Thomas, who is nursing a torn hamstring, finished eighth. The disappointment left her in tears, but she vowed to continue training with the aim of completing the Diamond League season.
Rai Benjamin, silver medallist at the 2019 Worlds and the Tokyo Games last year, posted the fastest time in the world this year in winning the 400m hurdles in 47.04sec.
Benjamin improved on the previous season-leading 47.23 posted by Alison Dos Santos at the Eugene Diamond League in May and provided a tantalizing glimpse of what the event could offer at Worlds, where he’ll be aiming to avenge his loss to Karsten Warholm in the Tokyo final - when both ran under the previous world record.



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