The last time a sprinter won the 100- and 200-meter events at the Olympics, the record belonged to Usain Bolt.

He was the star from Jamaica who had staked a legitimate — and perhaps indisputable — claim to earn the title of fastest man alive.

Lyles had a chance to ensure his name belonged in any of those conversations, but he settled for a bronze medal after Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo won gold and Team USA’s Kenny Bednarek won silver.

Earlier this week, Lyles became the first Team USA athlete to win the 100-meter sprint in 20 years, with a photo-finish victory in 9.784 seconds. 

He’s still expected to compete in the 4×100-meter relay final, too, despite not racing in the heat to get Team USA there.

But before that, he had a chance to add some more history to his 2024 Olympics, and Lyles, in a rare scenario, fell short.