Rome (AFP)

Noah Lyles had not been beaten in 200m for almost three years: the new star of the American sprint came across the other new star of the American sprint, Michael Norman, winner in 19 sec 70 Thursday at the League meeting. Rome diamond.

They were born both in 1997 and they go very fast: the specialists of the short sprint (100, 200 m) Noah Lyles and the long sprint (200, 400 m) Michael Norman offered an impressive duel in Rome which risked to reproduce in the future, as their progression is constant.

On his favorite distance, Noah Lyles was expected: he had not been beaten since his disappointment in the US selections of July 2016, (4th in 20.09 before Norman already), making him miss the Rio Games. Since then, he has lined up nine wins and dominated the Diamond League in 2017 and 2018, but missed the Worlds-2017 on injury.

This is to say the feat achieved by Michael Norman Thursday: author of an impressive start allowing him to quickly return to the height of Lyles, placed a corridor in front of him, the Californian has resisted in the right to beat the Floridian a breath (19 sec 70 vs. 19 sec 72).

- Personal record crushed -

Rather a 400-meter specialist, Michael Norman had already ignited the Torrance, California track in April, becoming the 4th best all-time world performer (43 sec 45), before easily winning in Stockholm in the cold last week ( 44.53).

Driven by Lyles, he has just crushed his former personal record lap (19.84) to become the 12th best performer in history, enough to thrill the South African way Van Niekerk and his record of world of 400 m (43 sec 03 in Rio in 2016).

"What I imagine is the 42 seconds, it will have to be in the right place at the right time, in a race composed exclusively of exceptional athletes," he told AFP last week.

Still a virgin international medal winners, the two 21-year-old athletes are among the favorites for the Doha World Cup (September 27 - October 6) where the competition could take a blow of old, like the world champion Turkish Ramil Guliyev ( 29 years old) Thursday in Rome, only 4th in 20.35.

And that's not all, Lyles and Norman lead a young generation of the scary American sprint, also composed of Rai Benjamin (21) winner in 47.58 on 400 m hurdles Thursday and Christian Coleman (23), the vice-champion the world of the 100m scheduled on June 13 on the straight line at the Oslo meeting.

? 2019 AFP