Delayed but not denied: Josephus Lyles talks self-respect, setbacks, brotherhood

Josephus Lyles‘ path has been a little different than his older brother, but despite injuries, other setbacks and disappointment, there’s no one that’s cheered harder for Noah than Josephus. The 24-year-old U.S. sprinter opens up about learning to speak up for himself, how to navigate dealing with comparison and brotherhood.

*This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

OlympicTalk: How did you get your start in track and field? 

Josephus Lyles: My mother and father ran track and field. My dad, Kevin, was on the 1995 World Championships team. He got a gold medal on the 4x400m there, and my mom, Keisha, was a multiple time NCAA champion. My brother Noah and I were around the sport for a long time. My dad used to train at the University of Florida, and we would be playing in the sand pits while he was at practice. When we were younger, we never did track. Our parents wanted us to try a lot of sports and have fun.

The first time I did track, I actually hated it. I ran the 400m and the 800m, and I remember running AAU track in the summer. We lived in North Carolina at the time, and it was so hot. Running the 800m was hard. I did not enjoy it at all, so I quit track around fifth or sixth grade. I came back to the sport in eighth grade, and the only reason I did it was because my friends at the time were going to run track.

When I started running in eighth grade, the eighth graders in the middle school were allowed to play high school JV sports because we didn’t have middle school sports. I just started loving it. I don’t know what it was. … My dad wasn’t my coach. The family dynamic when your father is your coach can be a little tense. But I remember falling in love with it and succeeding. I started to love the