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It’s been more than 24-hours since the men’s 100m final at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, and debate rages on about how the winner of the much-talked about final was determined.
On social media, I continue to be inundated with questions about what factors were considered in separating the two – American Noah Lyles, who was declared winner, and Jamaican Kinshane Thompson, who got the silver – despite both athletes finishing with the same time of 9.79s.
Officially, Lyles won by 5000th of a second, or numerically, by 0.005s. The final times were determined to be 9.784s for Lyles and 9.789s for Thompson.
Officially, it was the slimmest margin a champion has ever been determined in Olympics history, and the first time all eight (8) finalists ran sub-10 times in 100m.
The still pictures at the finish line show the Jamaican’s foot firmly planted on the finish line first and his head appears to be ahead of Lyle’s as well, leading many to suggest that means he won, and thus was robbed.
The same image shows Lyle’s torso, or upper body, slightly ahead, confirming he won the race.
But there are people who are hearing the idea of a torso being important in determining athletics results for the first time, so let’s explain.
To understand what happened on Sunday night, we first need to understand how World Athletics – the governing body for athletics explains what a photo finish is.
Credit: Myjoyonline.com
