What does being the fastest man alive offer you? Besides a gold medal and bragging rights, sprinter Noah Lyles hopes the excellence comes with a signature sneaker.

“I want my own shoes. I want my own coach. I’m dead serious about that,” Lyles said after his victory Sunday in the lads’s 100 meters on the 2024 Paris Olympics. “I want sneakers. There’s no money in (running) spikes. There’s money in sneakers, and even Michael Johnson didn’t have his own sneakers. I think considering how many medals (athletes) bring in, how much publicity (athletes) get, the fact that it hasn’t happened yet is crazy to me.”

It’s a matter of regulations, but Johnson got company sneakers, Nike Zoom JST shoesin 1998. The shoes didn’t sell particularly well, and which may be part of a bigger hurdle that even the world’s fastest track star might find too high. Usain Bolt, the fastest man in the world, also received a particular finish during his track profession. In June 2012, Bolt’s long-time sponsor Puma released the evoSpeed ​​Runner Usain Bolt ahead of the London Olympics, where he won gold in the 100-meter final with a still-record time of 9.63 seconds. Puma also supplied Bolt’s distinctive evoSpeed ​​cleats, which he wore in his final Olympic appearance in 2016.

Despite the well-deserved fame that individuals like Lyles, Sha’Carri Richardson and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce bring to their sport every 4 years, it’s still only every 4 years. Track and field stays a distinct segment sport, televised in places that are not yet ready for prime time. The sport doesn’t see the commas that the NBA and WNBA saw in their groundbreaking broadcast deals. Occupying that smaller slice of the media landscape means less recognizable faces. Unfortunately, runners remain in the highlight when their names are implicated in scandal, even in the event that they have a couple of medals to their name. While Lyles’s point about track and field athletes competing against world-class competition is valid, as are his beliefs about their athletic ability, those facts alone don’t change much.

It’s easy to see why Lyles wants this for himself and, more importantly, for the game he loves. Even without squinting, it’s not not possible to see his vision. The Virginia native ruffled a couple of feathers on the 2023 world championships when compared the track and the NBAquestioning the legitimacy of a league calling itself “world champions.” While the comments went viral, the context of his words fell on deaf ears. Lyles turned to the larger issue of attracting attention to the game. Winning medals is his first, second and third goal. Still, he never stopped enthusiastic about find out how to leverage that success on an even bigger platform.

“After you win medals, more and more people start to get interested in it. You can get into fashion, you can get into music. You can start to network with people and meet bigger and better athletes. You go from athletes to artists, and from artists to the world. And now you have connections,” Lyles said.

Lyles is forging these connections, transforming himself into an undeniable brand. Skill alone now not pays the bills. But combining ability with a present for gab and a flair for the dramatic normally equals a lifelong set-up. And Lyles is halfway there.

Like Richardson, Felix, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and track legends similar to sprinters Usain Bolt, Gail Devers and Florence Griffith Joyner, the fastest man in the world stands out. Lyles wore a striking pair of Adidas Adizero Y-3 spikes created by Japanese designer Yohji Yamamoto of Paris. He runs in diamond-covered chain link necklaces. The man also wears Speedmaster watch by Omegaofficial timekeeper of the Olympic Games, and Lyles is a brand ambassador. Anyone can call themselves an icon, but few have the arrogance to color different designs and messages on their nails just like the Alexandria, Virginia, native did on the Olympics. In response to Lyles’s remark about networking, retired NBA point guard Dwyane Wade noted the nails and he handed the gold medalist his props, similar to an NBA legend Magician Johnson. Aside from Johnson’s humblebrag about watching the Olympics on a yacht, these looks could get Lyles’ name ringing in places that matter. It helps that he has the personality to match his jewelry and colourful numbers.

He makes decisions and basks in the highlight at any time when it comes his way, especially when he can use it to his advantage. It didn’t trouble him when NBA players attacked him for those comments in 2023. To Lyles, the incontrovertible fact that they responded was proof of his status.

“When I won the title of fastest man in the world, suddenly people listened and said: ‘The fastest man in the world said that? I can’t believe you said something like that’” Lyles said.

Even Bolt, the person Lyles desires to surpass in the record books, said the 27-year-old’s personality and attitude are exactly what this sport needs. The same charisma Bolt sees is one reason Lyles is featured in a Netflix docuseries and is the topic of an upcoming Peacock series. If success is about preparation, opportunity and timing, the celebrities appear to be aligning for Lyles, who has a sponsorship cope with Adidas.

Convincing Adidas to provide him a patented sneaker continues to be easier said than done. A sneaker deal typically provides the athlete with a 5 percent or 6 percent royalty on each shoe sold. The variety of shoes sold ought to be enough to justify the hundreds of thousands invested in the athlete and help the corporate’s bottom line. Let’s say a typical deal pays a base salary of $5 million to $15 million a yr and features a 5 percent royalty on each shoe sold. In that case, it’s an enormous bet that the corporate and the star need to work in their favor. NBA players are on TV almost every night from October through June. Even if it’s a game where someone isn’t wearing the shoes, there’s a superb probability one other player will pull on a pair, given the relationships many athletes have with Nike, Adidas and Under Armour. Lyles would wish more face-to-face time with the general public, and he’d find enough running mates in his sport and beyond who wish to put his name on their feet.

It’s unlikely, but what else is recent for the person who won America’s first gold medal in the 100-meter dash in 20 years? Lyles is an asthmatic who runs faster than every other man on the planet. He has attention deficit disorder, dyslexia, Depression and anxiety. He wears these ailments with pride, in addition to his love for Observers can easily overlook his need for designer shoes. All it takes is one person and one moment to alter the whole lot. Lyles understands social media, wears his emotions on the surface, shows off as best he can and makes sure all eyes are on him.

To paraphrase considered one of the his latest posts on Xwhy not him?