U.S. track and field star Noah Lyles has cleared the air regarding his controversial words on Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards. The 27-year-old sprinter, known for his history of friction with the NBA, initially stirred up attention with his comments questioning the legitimacy of the NBA champions’ claim to the “World Champions” title back in August 2023.
Noah Lyles Clarifies Controversial Statement On Anthony Edwards
Noah Lyles was at the center of another controversy after an excerpt from a June 2024 interview with Sean Gregory of TIME magazine spread on social media. In the interview, the Olympian mentioned being taken aback due to his equipment sponsor Adidas. The German brand had invited him to a shoe event for the launch of fellow endorser Anthony Edwards’s first signature sneaker, the Adidas AE1, presumably in late 2023. Lyles cleared the air about the issue on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, explaining instead that he was not able to attend the event due to a scheduling conflict.
There is a rumor going around that I did not go to @theantedwards_ shoe release because he didn’t deserve it. That is not the case he definitely deserves his shoes he is an amazing player. The problem was finding time based on my prior engagements.
Congratulations on Becoming an…— Noah Lyles, OLY (@LylesNoah) August 12, 2024
Lyles also congratulated Edwards for winning a gold medal in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. The Wolves guard was part of the Team USA squad that won the men’s basketball tournament.The sprinter himself brought home a gold medal in the men’s 100-meter event and a bronze medal in the men’s 200-meter event at the Paris Olympics. He also has a bronze medal for the men’s 200-meter event in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics (held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic).
The Virginia native, who has won six gold medals at the World Athletics Championships, inked a new contract with Adidas in February 2024. The undisclosed deal stands as the most lucrative track-and-field endorsement agreement in the post-Usain Bolt era. Edwards also signed a contract extension with the Three Stripes brand last month, reportedly worth eight figures annually, following the immense success of his debut signature sneaker.
Noah Lyles’ Prior Comments About Anthony Edwards
Noah Lyles told TIME last June that he initially felt offended when he learned that the two-time NBA All-Star received his own signature shoe before him, despite not having secured major achievements in the NBA. He also expressed a desire to have his own signature shoe.
“You want to do what? You want to invite me to [an event for] a man who has not even been to an NBA Finals? In a sport that you don’t even care about? And you’re giving him a shoe? No disrespect: the man is an amazing athlete. He is having a heck of a year. I love that they saw the insight to give him a shoe, because they saw that he was going to be big. All I’m asking is, ‘How could you not see that for me?”
Several figures around the league, from retired to active players, as well as media personalities, have slammed Lyles for both his remarks about Edwards and his prior about the NBA champions.
