Noah Lyles, the American sprint superstar targeting three gold medals in Paris, began his Olympic campaign in the 100m heats on Saturday morning. However, his quest for global glory experienced a rough start as he finished second in his heat, bested by the relatively unknown sprinter Louie Hinchliffe. Hinchliffe clocked a swift 9.98 seconds, edging out Lyles by 0.06 seconds. Fortunately for Lyles, he still qualified for the semi-finals as the top three finishers from each heat automatically advance.
Marcell Jacobs, the defending champion from Italy, also faced a challenge but secured a spot in the semi-finals by taking second in his heat.
Kishane Thompson of Jamaica, the current world leader with a time of 9.77, comfortably won his heat in 10.00 seconds.
Both Jamaica and the United States will have three athletes each in tomorrow's semi-finals.