All About Noah Lyles' Parents, Keisha Caine Bishop and Kevin Lyles

Mar. 15, 2025

Noah Lyles with girlfriend Junelle Bromfield (L), father Kevin Lyles (C) and mother Keisha Caine Bishop (R).Photo:Morgan Treacy/INPHO/Shutterstock

Morgan Treacy/INPHO/Shutterstock

Noah Lyles, a top sprinter onTeam USA, comes from a family of athletes, with both his parents, Keisha Caine Bishop and Kevin Lyles, being former track stars.

“To them, making the Olympics was like getting a driver’s license because they have been raised around so many track and field Olympians,” Keisha toldTodayin June 2024.

Noah competed at the2024 Paris Olympics, where he secured gold in the 100-meter final and bronze in the 200-meter final (aftertesting positive for COVID). But it wasn’t his first time on Team USA, Noah also went to the2020 Tokyo Olympicsin 2021, where he took home abronze medal in the 200-meter race.

From their own track achievements to their dedication to nurturing Noah’s talent, here’s everything to know about Noah Lyles' parents, Keisha Caine Bishop and Kevin Lyles.

They met in college

Keisha Caine Bishop and Noah Lyles in 2023.Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu via Getty

Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu via Getty

Keisha and Kevin met at Seton Hall University in the 1990s, where they were both standout athletes in track and field. Off the track, Keisha studied political science and Spanish. Both Keisha and Kevin graduated in 1995 and married not long after.

“Their children are probably going to be very fast people,” John Moon, Seton Hall track coach, said in 1995, per theAsbury Park Press.

Keisha and Kevin are former track athletes

During their time at college, Keisha and Kevin thrived in track and field, both setting records and taking home multiple wins. Keisha was atwo-time NCAA championwith the women’s 4x400 relay team, 9-tim Big East Conference Champion and a 10-time All-American. Meanwhile, Kevin was named the1993 Big East Indoor Championship’s Most Outstanding Track Performer, medaled in the 1995 World Championships and later competed in the 1996 Olympic trials.

They have three kids, and two are accomplished sprinters

Noah Lyles and Josephus Lyles.MATTHIAS HANGST/POOL/AFP via Getty

MATTHIAS HANGST/POOL/AFP via Getty

In 2016, just weeks before the brothers were set to start at the University of Florida, Noah and Josephus instead each signed eight-year contracts with Adidas, making them the first male sprinters to go pro directly out of high school, perThe Washington Post.

While the brothers are some of the world’sfastest runners, Keisha says Noah and Josephus let their individuality shine while on the track.

“If you know what you’re looking for, you can see their personalities in the way they run,” Keisha toldThe Washington Postin 2016. “Noah’s creative, but he’s cautious. Josephus, he just says, ‘I’m going to give it all I got, and catch me if you can.’ "

They encouraged their kids to find their own paths

Noah Lyles after winning the men’s 100m final on Day Three 2024 US Olympic Team Trials Track & Field.Patrick Smith/Getty

Patrick Smith/Getty

Despite Keisha and Kevin’s shared love of track and field, they wanted to nurture exploration in their children and allow them to discover their own passions.

“When we were younger, we never did track,” Josephus toldNBCin 2023. “Our parents wanted us to try a lot of sports and have fun.”

Still, they found their way to their parents’ roots.

“When they’re kids, you forget that as you get into trying to raise them,” Kevin told theAsbury Park Pressin 2021. “You don’t want to put that pressure on them. But to see it happen is amazing. Not every track couple has kids that do what they’re doing.”

In an interview withSports Illustratedin July 2024, Keisha said how she wanted her sons to choose a path in whatever they wanted, and always used to recite them a quote attributed toJohn Lennon: “When I was five years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy.’ They told me I didn’t understand the assignment. I told them they didn’t understand life.”

Keisha told the outlet that when she saw the quote, she thought, “This is Noah.”

They divorced in 2008

Noah gave Kevin “one of the best gifts ever”

Noah Lyles and father Kevin Lyles.Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty

Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty

In a 2021Asbury Park Pressinterview, Kevin revealed that the ring awarded to the Seton Hall Pirates' 1993 Big East indoor championship team, where Kevin was the Most Outstanding Performer, vanished amid the chaos of raising children.

“The kids were at that stage where they were throwing things away, throwing stuff in the toilet,” Kevin said. “Something happened and I think that’s how I lost my ring. It was on my dresser and then I couldn’t find it. When we moved from that house, I tore it up looking for that ring.”

Years later, in 2020, Noah contacted one of Kevin’s former Seton Hall teammates and borrowed his 1993 Big East Championship ring. He then had a replica made and surprised Kevin.

“One of the best gifts ever,” he said of the gesture.

Keisha and Kevin appreciate Noah’s creative side

Noah Lyles in June 2024.Patrick Smith/Getty

Off the track, Noah is inherently creative and the elite sprinter’s hobbies include “painting (especially shoes), watching anime, making music and building complex LEGO creations,” perOlympics.com.

“I do it to express myself through art and symbolism,” he toldThe Washington Postin 2016. “As much as I try, I can’t always express myself on the track.”

However, his artistic nature still comes through when he’s competing, as Noah approaches the sport as a craft, wanting it to be something others enjoy watching.

“Being able to run with passion, and a smile on your face, and turning a race into something for everybody to enjoy, that’s what I consider running with soul,” the athlete toldTIMEin July 2024.

His parents have frequently mentioned in interviews how much they noticed his artistic side from a young age.

“He’s always been really creative and quirky and just … him,” Keisha toldSports Illustratedin July 2024. “He polishes his nails and wears his hair in different colors and loves fashion. I really believe he’s an artist who runs fast.”

When Noah faced bouts of isolation in middle school, he gravitated towards art — making sketches of Spiderman and designing uniforms for the track and field team, per TIME.

“He was that kid who was just always trying to test things out,” Kevin told the outlet in June 2024.

They believe it’s important to discuss mental health

Noah’s Olympic journey wasn’t as effortless as the talented sprinter may make it seem on the track. Throughout his childhood, Noah faced physical andmental health challenges, along with the family struggling financially. In adulthood, the athlete has been open about his bouts with depression. The Olympian and his family are now committed to being open about the adversity faced along the way as a means to encourage others to press forward.

“I think one of the reasons we were put in this position is because we are willing to be transparent about how hard it is,” Keisha toldToday. “And we want people to know it is hard, but you can do it.”

Noah has been vocal about his struggles, particularly a dark period in 2019 leading up to his first Olympics and the isolation amid the COVID-19 pandemic — where he combatted severe depression, mounting pressure, homesickness from constant travel and missing his brother who didn’t qualify for the event.

In 2019, while he was in Amsterdam weeks before his first outdoor world championships in Doha, Keisha came to visit as a means to help his homesickness, bringing Raisin Bran Crunch (Noah’s favorite) along with her.

“I didn’t want to leave,” Noah toldTIMEof the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. “I had to make a decision. I was like, all right, I’ve got to get better. I can’t let this control me.”

Noah says Keisha is his biggest inspiration

Noah Lyles and mother Keisha Caine Bishop in July 2022.Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu Agency via Getty

Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu Agency via Getty

“My biggest inspiration would probably be my mom,” Noah toldNBCin July 2024, adding that she’s made “a lot of sacrifices” for him and his brother.

“My mom is a hard worker. I remember her saying constantly, ‘I don’t care what the job is; as long as I’m able to make money for my family, I’ll do the job. And I will do it to the best of my ability,’ ” adding, “That’s kind of how I approach life.”

The athlete got emotional, tearing up as he said, “My mom means everything to me. We’re very close.”

source: people.com