American sprinter applauded after blasting NBA teams for inaccurate claim
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American sprinter Noah Lyles took aim at NBA sides dubbing themselves "world champions" after claiming a 200m gold medal - and was applauded for making a very fair point.
Lyles has been competing at the World Athletics Championships, which has been taking place in Budapest, the capital city of Hungary.
The 26-year-old has completed the feat of claiming both the 100m and 200m titles at the event.
After winning the 100m crown last week, Lyles won the 200m gold as he led an American one-two ahead of Erriyon Knighton, with Letsile Tebogo of Botswana claiming bronze.
He could yet claim a trio of gold medals at the Championships, should the US team win the 4x100m relay race.
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NBA basketball title winners traditionally term themselves as world champions when claiming their crown - and Lyles commented on this after winning his second gold medal out in Hungary.
He made the point in the post-race press conference that the NBA does not cover the entire world and only includes teams from the United States and Canada, to which journalists initially laughed when he made the point.
But he was applauded at the end of his statement as he launched a passionate monologue of the World Athletics Championship.
Speaking to the press after his 200m gold medal win, Lyles said: "I watch the NBA finals and they have 'world champions' on their head. World champion of what? The United States?
"Don't get me wrong, I love the US, at times, but that ain't the world. That is not the world, we are the world.
"We have almost every country out here, fighting, thriving, putting on their flag to show that they are represented.
"There aren't any flags in the NBA! We've got to do more, we've got to be presented to the world."
Featured Image Credit: Cathal Dennehy via X
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