American sprinter Noah Lyles, who aims to achieve a triple gold in the Paris Olympics in the 100 meters, 200 meters, and the 4x100 meters relay, declared that he considers himself "the fastest athlete" today and revealed his mental health struggles, confessing that he has been "at rock bottom" but is now "stronger than before."

Lyles, who has been one of the main stars since his arrival at the Paris Olympic Village, is enjoying "every moment" of his stay in the French capital.

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"I'm on the biggest stage in the world and I know I’ve been through the toughest parts. I’ve been at rock bottom. I fought to climb back up. I’ve addressed my weaknesses. Now I’m here stronger than before. If I lose this time, it won’t be because I defeated myself, but because the rivals were much better. But to be honest, if Noah Lyles is on point, there’s no one better," the American sprinter stated in a press conference.

“I know some athletes prefer to leave the Village and stay in hotels, but I enjoy the entire Olympic experience, being with other athletes and things like that. It’s been a bit challenging for me to find that place within the village, and I don’t want to leave,” he confessed.

After winning bronze in the 200 meters at the Tokyo Games, his goal has shifted three years later.

“I needed to reflect on myself. What does it take to have enough confidence to go into a competition and say I’m going to win? That’s where I put in the hard work. That’s when I decided to make myself uncomfortable, jumping into events that are just not for me. This year I won a silver medal in the 60 meters at the Indoor World Championships. There are tons of people who claim I have a terrible start, but someone with a terrible start can’t win a silver medal in the 60 meters,” he asserted.

“The line between confidence and arrogance is very thin. It’s all an opinion. That’s why I always say that if you’ve seen my life and what I’ve had to go through, being told literally 'you can’t do it' most of my life, you wouldn’t speak that way. And here I am again. Achieving almost everything I set out to do,” he stated.

“And it’s gaining that confidence with each step that slowly makes it grow more and more. So, I can understand why some people can’t see the vision I see. And I don’t blame anyone for that, but don’t discredit my vision just because I want to pursue it,” he concluded.