2024 Paris Olympics: See how close the finish was between Noah Lyles and Kishane Thompson in the men's 100 meters

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The words “photo finish” have never been more applicable than to the end of the men’s 100 meters race with the United States’ Noah Lyles and Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson.

Lyles won by the closest of margins – so close that it appeared to most that Thompson had won. NBC’s play-by-play announcer Leigh Diffey called Thompson the winner in the moment during its broadcast.

However, a winner was not immediately declared as replays and photos were being closely scrutinized. The Jamaican sprinter certainly seemed to think he won, until Lyles came over to tell him that the finish was being reviewed.

Then the photo and slow-motion replay evidence came in and showed that Lyles was indeed the winner. It was close, so very close. Plenty of comparisons were immediately made: By a hair, by a breath, by the blink of the eye. The photo from the Associated Press captures it perfectly.

In the aftermath, many viewers – fans and media alike – criticized NBC for being so quick to call Thompson the winner. Yet the finish was so close and so fast that it’s difficult to blame Diffey for calling a result that to the plain eye looked plausibly correct.