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"Oh! It's Bolt!" - Best quotes of 2023
10 November, 2023

"Oh! It's Bolt!" - Best quotes of 2023

Photo: Matthew Quine

Sha'Carri Richardson talked up the sisterhood, Mondo Duplantis got his thirst on, and Noah Lyles remembered an awkward meeting with fellow sprint legend Usain Bolt. We take a look back at some of the best quotes of the 2023 Wanda Diamond League season.

2023 was not only the greatest ever Wanda Diamond League season on the track, it also delivered some memorable moments on the microphone. In part two of the best quotes of the year: shaky hands, a meeting of legends and some "brewskis".

"My hands are a little shaky" - Ackelia Smith

Jamaica's Ackelia Smith admitted she was feeling the nerves when she faced the media alongside fellow rising triple jump star Jayden Hibbert ahead of Herculis EBS Monaco in July. At 21 and 18 respectively, it was a first appearance for both of them at a Diamond League press conference. But in a line-up which included Shericka Jackson, Faith Kipyegon and Sydney McLaughlin, they both looked entirely at home. Hibbert almost claimed a sensational victory the following day, finishing second behind Hugues Fabrice Zango at the Stade Louis II. 

"Why you being so modest, man?" - Noah Lyles

When Zharnel Hughes was asked whether he intended to break the British 200m record in London, he gave a textbook diplomatic answer. Sitting to his right, however, Noah Lyles was having none of it. When he heard that the record was "only" 19.94 he scolded Hughes for being so modest, insisting they would both beat that mark without breaking a sweat. And he was right: the next day, Hughes clocked 19.73 in front of a sellout crowd, while Lyles broke the meeting record with 19.46. 

"It's difficult to sleep after you win gold" - Gianmarco Tamberi

Gianmarco Tamberi may not have defended his Diamond League title in 2023, but at least he had a good excuse. In August, the Italian high jumper became world champion for the first time in Budapest, and when he returned to Diamond League action a few weeks later in Zurich, he admitted that he had barely slept since.

"There'll be a few brewskis in play" - Mondo Duplantis

By the time he got to the Wanda Diamond League Final in Eugene, you could have forgiven Mondo Duplantis for having one eye on the post-season festivities. His brothers had also travelled to Eugene, he admitted before the competition, so he was expecting to have "a few brewskis" after defending his Diamond League title. In the end, it was probably more than a few: having wrapped up the title, Duplantis cleared 6.23m at the first attempt to break the world record for the seventh time.

"I love sisterhood" - Sha'Carri Richardson

2023 was the year in which Sha'Carri Richardson established herself beyond doubt as one of the world's best sprinters, winning world championship gold and taking three Diamond League victories in the course of the season. Ahead of the series final in Eugene, the American star said she was most proud of having built a bond with her fellow competitors and reminded everyone that, whether on track or in front of a microphone, she is never one to hold back. 

"Just stick to me as long as you can" - Jakob Ingebrigtsen

If anyone has as much confidence as Lyles and Richardson, it is Jakob Ingebrigtsen. Ahead of the final in Eugene, the Norwegian distance star listened politely as Yared Nuguse talked about his hopes of breaking the American record in the mile. Then he reminded Nuguse that he had the best pacemaker he could possibly hope for in front of him, and insisted that they would both go below 3:46. Like Lyles, he wasn't wrong. Ingebrigtsen smashed the European and Diamond League record with 3:43.73, while Nuguse obliterated the American record with 3:43.97 in second. 

"Oh! It's Bolt!" - Noah Lyles

It takes quite something to catch Noah Lyles off guard. The 200m Diamond League champion is a man who oozes confidence and ease with the world, but when a huge, Jamaican-legend-shaped shadow stepped out in front of him in Budapest, even Lyles found himself doing a double take. 

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