Celebrity Jewelry

Judge the Jewels: Athlete Noah Lyles Wears Diamonds For His World Championship Race

Professional athletes wearing fine jewelry while accomplishing their feats of athleticism may feel like an unlikely trend, but it’s definitely happening.

Published

2 months ago

September 28, 2023

Becky Stone

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The sighting: Olympian Noah Lyles is a six-time world champion sprinter. That’s impressive, but what really impresses me is that when he won his most recent gold medal at the 2023 World Athletics Championship, he did it wearing a spectacular diamond necklace.

The jewels: Lyles’ world championship necklace is a very substantial white metal mariner link chain. Each large individual link appears to be adorned with pavé, alternating between white, black, and yellow stones.

The chain is closely fitted, slightly longer than choker length, so that it won’t flop around or strangle the athlete while he runs.

I haven’t been able to find the maker of this specific necklace, but it is an established fact that Lyles is a fan of The Village Jeweler in his hometown of Gainsville, Florida. The retailer worked with the Lyles in the past to design both this custom rose gold and gemstone Olympic-themed ring and this custom rose gold and diamond Cuban link chain.

If The Village Jewelry also created Lyles’ multi-color mariner link chain, they haven’t mentioned it on social media. But given the athlete’s well-documented affection for custom fine jewelry, I think it’s safe to assume that the chain he chose to wear for his world championship race was also made from real diamonds.

The trends: Professional athletes wearing fine jewelry while accomplishing their feats of athleticism may feel like an unlikely trend, but it’s definitely happening. Seeing serious sports figures in major swag isn’t new, but that swag is finding its way on to the field is a fun change.

What do we think? Noah Lyles looks extremely cool zooming around the track in his diamond chain. And maybe when you’re on your 6th world championship by age 26, you need to add a little bling to keep things interesting.

I don’t generally condone wearing jewelry for athletic activities, but sprinting isn’t a contact sport, so the chain is relatively safe.

Judgement: 15/10 because I love a sports gentleman sporting in serious jewelry!

When There’s No Succession Plan, Call Wilkerson

Bob Wesley, owner of Robert C. Wesley Jewelers in Scottsdale, Ariz., was a third-generation jeweler. When it was time to enjoy life on the other side of the counter, he weighed his options. His lease was nearing renewal time and with no succession plan, he decided it was time to call Wilkerson. There was plenty of inventory to sell and at first, says Wesley, he thought he might try to manage a sale himself. But he’s glad he didn’t. “There’s no way I could have done this as well as Wilkerson,” he says. Wilkerson took responsibility for the entire event, with every detail — from advertising to accounting — done, dusted and managed by the Wilkerson team. “It’s the complete package,” he says of the Wilkerson method of helping jewelers to easily go on to the next phase of their lives. “There’s no way any retailer can duplicate what they’ve done.”