'I'm worth more than what I did' - Fred Kerley reflects on Olympic gold medal defeat to Noah Lyles in Paris

Two-time Olympian and medallist Fred Kerley has expressed disappointment with his bronze medal finish behind Noah Lyles in the 100m final at the Paris Olympic Games last summer.

Speaking on The Pivot podcast, the American speedster reflected on his rollercoaster journey before the Games, how he was still grateful for winning a medal but would have wanted more based on his capabilities.

"Nothing is given at the Olympics. You know millions of people try out for our thing. I feel like it's no failure but you know what you're capable of accomplishing. So It's like me getting a medal at the Olympic Games is no failure, but I know I'm worth more than what I did " said Kerley when asked if his bronze medal was a failure compared to being celebrated as a winner.

In the men's 100m final in Paris, the 29-year-old against all odds claimed the bronze medal behind Jamaica's pre-race favourite Kishane Thompson and fellow American Lyles, who blazed to his first Olympic gold medal in a new Personal Best (PB) of 9.79s to win USA's first Olympic men's 100m title in 20 years since Justin Gatlin accomplished the feat at Athens 2004.

The race, which was one for the history books saw Thompson settle for the silver medal by a minute 0.005 thousand of seconds, while Kerley resurfaced on why he's a former world champion with the last podium finish in 9.81s.

Their groundbreaking effort regarded as the fastest in history, producing the first race where all finalists broke the 10-seconds barrier and the gap between Lyles and Oblique Seville (who finished last) was just 0.12s - the smallest ever gap recorded between the first and eighth place in a global men's final.

These positives are likely what makes Kerley confident about how huge of an accomplishment it is to medal and why it can lead to greater feats in future.

"Because win or lose, it coming down to dozen. You know what I'm saying, so that was just a loss but it's going to prepare me for something bigger later on down the line," he said.

Kerley will strive to once again make the US team for the Tokyo World Championships this summer, where he'll aim to upstage Lyles for the 100m world title he last won in 2022.