Oblique Seville has spoken out about his thoughts after undergoing a short surgery days after beating Noah Lyles and Kishane Thompson at World Championships that left America speechless about him

In the sweltering heat of Tokyo’s National Stadium, under the watchful eyes of a roaring crowd and a pantheon of sprinting legends, Oblique Seville etched his name into the annals of athletics history. On September 14, 2025, the unassuming 24-year-old Jamaican exploded from the blocks in the men’s 100m final at the World Athletics Championships, clocking a blistering personal best of 9.77 seconds to snatch gold from the jaws of two of the sport’s most hyped titans: compatriot Kishane Thompson and defending Olympic champion Noah Lyles. Thompson, the Olympic silver medalist who had entered as the season’s fastest man with a 9.75, settled for silver in 9.82, while Lyles, the brash American showman, limped to bronze in 9.89—a result that sent shockwaves through the United States, where expectations for a Lyles repeat had bordered on certainty.

The victory was more than a sprint; it was a seismic shift. Coming into Tokyo, the narrative swirled around the simmering rivalry between Lyles and Thompson, a duo that had defined the Paris 2024 Olympics with a photo-finish thriller decided by a mere 0.005 seconds. Lyles, ever the provocateur, had hyped himself as “in the best form of my life,” while Thompson’s undefeated streak in the 100m that season painted him as the inevitable king. Seville? He was the wildcard, the 21-year-old prodigy from St. Ann, Jamaica, who had shown flashes of brilliance—a 9.82 at the Jamaican trials, a semifinal cruise in 9.86—but lacked the global spotlight. “I was just focused on my lane,” Seville later reflected in a post-race interview, his voice steady amid the chaos. “Everyone was talking about Noah and Kishane, but I knew my training was peaking. Usain Bolt texted me before the race: ‘Run like it’s your last.’ That stuck with me.”

As Seville crossed the line, arms pumping in disbelief, the stadium erupted. Bolt, the eight-time Olympic gold medalist and Jamaica’s sprint deity, leaped from his seat in the stands, fists raised like a man reliving his own glory days. The Jamaican one-two punch—gold and silver—reclaimed the throne for the island nation that has long dominated the sprints, but it was Seville’s surge in the final 20 meters that stole the show. He overtook Thompson with raw, unyielding power, leaving Lyles in a trail of dust. For America, the defeat stung deeply. Lyles, who had entered the championships nursing a season marred by injuries and only four 100m races under his belt, had vowed to defend his world title and solidify his legacy. Instead, his bronze—a medal he graciously celebrated with a bow to the crowd—exposed vulnerabilities in a U.S. sprint machine that suddenly looked mortal. Social media lit up with stunned reactions: “America speechless? Understatement of the year,” tweeted one pundit, while ESPN analysts dissected how Seville’s “ghost mode” start had unraveled the favorites.

The afterglow, however, was short-lived for Seville. Just three days later, on September 17, the golden boy underwent a minor surgical procedure in Kingston, Jamaica, to address a nagging hamstring tweak sustained during the semifinals. It was precautionary, his team insisted—a quick arthroscopic cleanup to prevent any long-term issues ahead of the lucrative Diamond League finale and next season’s pursuits. Yet, in the high-stakes world of elite sprinting, where margins are measured in hundredths of a second, even a whisper of injury raises eyebrows. Seville, ever the stoic, broke his silence from his recovery bed in a heartfelt Instagram Live session on September 28, mere hours before this report.

“Surgery was straightforward—nothing major, just some maintenance to keep me sharp,” Seville said, his trademark dreadlocks tied back, a Jamaican flag draped over his shoulders. “Right after Tokyo, I felt that pull in my hammy during the cool-down. It wasn’t pain, more like a reminder that the body’s got limits. But man, beating Noah and Kishane? That rush drowned it all out. Noah’s a beast; he’s got that fire, that showmanship. Kishane’s my brother—we train together sometimes, push each other. To edge them both… it’s surreal. America going quiet? I get it. They built Noah up like he’s invincible, but track’s a humbling game. No one’s untouchable.”

Seville’s candor cut through the hype. He spoke of the weight of expectations, not just as a Jamaican carrying Bolt’s shadow, but as an underdog in a sport increasingly dominated by personalities over performances. “I don’t trash-talk like Noah—that’s his vibe, and it works for him,” he continued, chuckling. “Me? I let my spikes do the talking. This gold’s for the kids back in St. Ann who lace up old sneakers and dream big. Surgery’s a bump, but I’m walking already, eyeing that 200m next year. World’s fastest man? Feels good, but it’s fuel, not the finish line.”

The procedure, performed by Jamaica’s renowned sports medicine team at the University of the West Indies Hospital, involved minor debridement to alleviate inflammation—no tears, no setbacks projected beyond a few weeks of rehab. Coaches report Seville’s already back in light strides, his focus shifting to the relays, where he’ll anchor alongside Thompson in the 4x100m, a event Jamaica dominated in Tokyo with a world-leading 37.97 handoff. For Lyles, the bronze was a silver lining amid personal turmoil; he later admitted to battling back spasms that sapped his explosive start. “Props to Oblique,” Lyles posted on X. “Kid’s got that quiet killer instinct. I’ll be back—watch me in the 200.”

Across the Atlantic, the U.S. track community grappled with the upset. Pundits on NBC Sports called it “Jamaica’s revenge,” pointing to a pipeline of talent from Seville’s generation—runners like Nickecoy Barkley and Jahiem Russell—who are nipping at the heels of American stars. Fred Kerley, Lyles’ teammate, summed it up bluntly: “We got outrun. Time to grind harder.” Thompson, gracious in defeat, echoed the sentiment in a presser: “Oblique earned it. That PB? Untouchable. We’re stronger for it—Jamaica’s just getting started.”

As Seville heals, his victory lingers as a testament to the unpredictable poetry of the 100m dash. In a event where legends are forged in nine seconds flat, the quiet ones often roar the loudest. With Bolt’s endorsement ringing in his ears and a world title gleaming on his shelf, Seville’s post-surgery musings offer a glimpse into the mind of a new era’s sprinter: resilient, reflective, and relentlessly forward. America may still be catching its breath, but in sprinting’s grand theater, the curtain has only just risen on Act Two.