By By Khothatso Mokone, an Athlete, Sports Journalist and communications officer
Noah Lyles beat Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson by five-thousandths of a second to win Olympic gold in a stunning men’s 100m final in Paris on Sunday, 4 August 2024. Both of them crossed the finish line in 9.79 seconds—the exact same time.
However, there is a time difference between the American and the Jamaican. If their times were written in numeric form, Lyles would clock 9.79, while Thompson would clock 9.79,005 (0.005 being the five-thousandths of a second). It is almost impossible to see this kind of time, which is why there is an electronic timing system at the finish line.
Many people, including myself, were under the impression that because Thompson’s feet crossed the finish line first, he should be the winner. However, in athletics, particularly in sprint races, the rule states that it must be the torso (any part of the upper body) that crosses the finish line first.
In this case, the American crossed the finish line first because his upper body went over the line before anybody else did. In some races, organizers place a ribbon as the finish line, and runners lean forward in order to break that ribbon; it is not the feet that cross it, but the chest.
I think it was unfortunate for Thompson, but at the same time, he should have known this rule and done everything within his means to win, just like Lyles did. However, it is also possible that the pressure of the moment caused this technicality to slip his mind, given the stature and magnitude of the Olympic final. So, to answer the opening question, it is both the torso and time that determine the winner in a race.
