American Olympic gold medallist Noah Lyles, who finished the 100 meters at the Paris Olympics with a timing of 9.79 seconds, brushed off criticism directed on his painted nails.
Lyles posted on X (previously Twitter) shortly after his triumph, reflecting on the difficulties he had surmounted to mark Olympic history.
"I have Asthma, allergies, dyslexia, ADD, anxiety, and Depression," he added. "But I will tell you that your ability to become is not defined by your past. why not you?
Lyles, the first American male to win gold in the Olympic 100 meters since Justin Gatlin in 2004, recently spoke in an exclusive interview with Us Weekly about the debate over his "ICON" nail painting at the 2024 Olympics opening ceremony.
Lyles told the site, "I'm a person who realizes that a lot of individuals have different perspective and they have them for various reasons. To be honest, I am rather self-confident in myself therefore it makes no difference. At times, I find it amusing.
ESPN hailed Lyles for his "powerful" message about his long-time struggle with asthma, a condition he has controlled since infancy, following gold medals at the Olympics.
Lyles told CNN in 2020, "asthma definitely affects kind of everything I do in terms of health, physical fitness, sometimes even emotional because if you're emotionally tired, that can bring your immune system down."
Now, the AP reports, the elite athlete has a message for Adidas, his shoe sponsor.
"I wish for my own shoe," he replied.
"I have my own trainer in mind. I take dead seriousness very seriously. I have a footwear in mind. There is money in sneakers; spikes have nothing. It's insane for me given the number of awards we bring back and the prominence we acquire—that is absent. Lyles agreed that it had to happen.