Zharnel Hughes believes he can emulate Linford Christie and win 100m gold medals for Great Britain at next month’s Olympics. But first, he has to settle scores with the arrogant American 100m and 200m world champion Noah Lyles, who he says will be the star of Netflix’s new track and field series “Sprint” was released and used harsh putdowns that “made me red all over.”
In last summer’s film, a reporter asked Lyles how he won the 200m at the London Diamond League. “Whatever I run,” he replied. When Hughes said he wanted to show he was “ready for it, too,” his American rival told him: “If you don’t have lead energy, track and field isn’t for you.”
Hughes admitted that it was only when he watched the Netflix show that he realized what Lyles said and how much he talked about him. “Obviously, as a competitor, it makes me red all over,” he said.
“I was like: ‘This guy, he just needs to shut up.’ My girlfriend is the one who keeps me calm. She’s like: ‘Baby, don’t be angry, don’t let it get into your head.'” he said These words are meant to throw you off psychologically.
“So, for me, I took that intense desire as an athlete and I tried to put it on the track,” Hughes said while speaking at the Vita Coco event.
“He just has a loose mouth and he just likes to talk. I guess that’s how he gets his confidence, so I can’t blame him. But I’m ready. I’ll see him in London. We’ll meet there and talk. .
Lyles eventually won the 200m in London in 19.47 seconds, while Hughes finished third behind Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo in a British record 19.73 seconds. But Saturday’s rematch over 100 meters is likely to be just as exciting, especially with Tebogo and British student Louie Hinchliffe, who recently broke 10 seconds, on the field.
Hughes insists he is back to his best after recovering from a grade one tear in his right hamstring that forced him to miss 12 days of training and last month’s European Championships. “I went back to training, hitting v-max reps, doing time trials and a few other things to make sure we hit our target,” he said. “Coach is excited, I’m excited and I’m looking forward to seeing what I can do.”
Hughes also revealed he had screenshots on his phone of Linford Christie’s gold medal win in Barcelona in 1992, and used footage of that game as motivation in Paris. “Linford and I have a great relationship,” he said. “When he stood on the podium and the British crowd cheered, it inspired me. It gave me chills. Winning the gold medal was our goal.
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Some experts, including Carl Lewis, believe Hughes would have won Olympic gold in Tokyo if he had not jumped the ball in the 100m final. He felt the same way. “Honestly. I thought I was ready,” he said. “Tokyo is very hot, so a lot of athletes get cramps, but unfortunately I was one of them. When I entered the block in the set position, my right calf cramped and I couldn’t stay in the block.
Last year, Hughes won a world 100m bronze medal in Budapest, further cementing his reputation as one of the most talented and popular members of Team GB. But he admitted it took him some time to adjust to Anguilla’s independence from the British territory in 2015, especially after some newspapers suggested he was a “plastic Brit”.
“When you first become part of a team and the first thing you see in a news article is ‘Plastic Brits’, my reaction was: ‘Well, I didn’t expect that.’ It felt a little distressing. I was like, “Why are you bringing this up? ” Eventually people started accepting me for who I was.
