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Japan Hails 100M Champ Lyles as ‘World’s Fastest Anime Fan’ 

Noah Lyles of the USA celebrates after winning the Men 100m final of the Athletics competitions in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, at the Stade de France stadium in Saint Denis, France, 04 August 2024. (EPA)
Noah Lyles of the USA celebrates after winning the Men 100m final of the Athletics competitions in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, at the Stade de France stadium in Saint Denis, France, 04 August 2024. (EPA)
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Japan Hails 100M Champ Lyles as ‘World’s Fastest Anime Fan’ 

Noah Lyles of the USA celebrates after winning the Men 100m final of the Athletics competitions in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, at the Stade de France stadium in Saint Denis, France, 04 August 2024. (EPA)
Noah Lyles of the USA celebrates after winning the Men 100m final of the Athletics competitions in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, at the Stade de France stadium in Saint Denis, France, 04 August 2024. (EPA)

Japanese media hailed Olympic 100m gold medalist Noah Lyles as the world's fastest anime fan after the American celebrated his win by miming an attack from "Dragon Ball".

Just five thousandths of a second separated the American champion from Jamaica's Kishane Thompson -- a thrilling finish that was the event's closest in modern history.

Wrapped in a US flag after the race, an over-the-moon Lyles thrust his hands forward, fingers splayed, imitating the "kamehamaha" attack used to unleash a powerful burst of energy in the Japanese manga and anime franchise.

The 27-year-old Lyles has made no secret of his love for Japanese pop culture, including comics and cartoons such as the global 1990s megahit "Dragon Ball".

At the Olympic trials in June, he delighted fellow anime enthusiasts by whipping out his "Yu-Gi-Oh" cards and showing them off to the cameras.

"Yu-Gi-Oh!" ran in the Japanese weekly comic magazine Shonen Jump between 1996 and 2004 and gave rise to a media franchise including a trading card game.

"Mankind's fastest otaku", blared a headline in Japanese sports newspaper Daily Sports -- using the term for hardcore superfans in a new nickname also used by other outlets.

Anime fans on social media also recalled how Lyles had paid tribute to "Dragon Ball" creator Akira Toriyama after his death aged 68 earlier this year.

"So sad to lose a legend Akira Toriyama... his work has forever affected my life," Lyles wrote on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, in March.

"I'm sure this kamehameha didn't go unnoticed by Toriyama-sensei," one fan said on X in response to his victory on Sunday.

The French men's fencing team also paid homage to "Dragon Ball" when they made "kamehameha" gestures in unison after winning bronze.

But it isn't the only anime that has inspired Olympians.

Brazilian volleyball player Darlan Ferreira Souza was seen in Paris with a tattoo on his arm featuring a slogan from "Haikyu!!", a series about high-school volleyball clubs.

The tattoo, saying "omoide nanka iran (We don't need memories)", elated "Haikyu!!" fans in Japan who saw the ink as proof of the anime's reach and impact.

"So happy to know 'Haikyu!' is travelling worldwide. Hope it will continue to inspire volleyball players across the world", one X post said.

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'Wicked' Tops SAG Awards Nominations Where Many Big-Names Are Shut out

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande in a scene from the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)
This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande in a scene from the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)
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'Wicked' Tops SAG Awards Nominations Where Many Big-Names Are Shut out

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande in a scene from the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)
This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande in a scene from the film "Wicked." (Universal Pictures via AP)

"Wicked" topped nominations to the 31st Screen Actors Guild Awards on Wednesday, landing a leading five nominations including best ensemble, and individual nods for Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey.

Out-of-control wildfires that swept across Los Angeles and Southern California on Tuesday night forced the Screen Actors Guild to cancel its plans to announce the nominations live Wednesday morning. The nominations were instead issued by press release by SAG, which last year began a multiyear deal with Netflix to stream the awards.

The smash hit musical "Wicked" saw its Oscar chances rise in the SAG nominations, which came the morning after the film was celebrated by the National Board of Review Awards in New York. "Wicked" even scored a nod for best stunt ensemble.

The other nominees for best ensemble are: "Anora,Conclave,Emilia Pérez" and "A Complete Unknown."

It was an especially strong showing for the Bob Dylan drama "A Complete Unknown." It came away with four nominations, including Timothée Chalamet for best male actor, and supporting nods for both Edward Norton and Monica Barbaro.

The best male lead nominees were largely as expected: Adrien Brody ("The Brutalist"), Daniel Craig ("Queer"), Colman Domingo ("Sing Sing"), Ralph Fiennes ("Conclave") and Chalamet.

Coming off her rousing victory at the Golden Globes, Demi Moore was among the nominees for best female actor in a leading role for "The Substance." She was joined by Erivo, "Emilia Perez" breakout Karla Sofía Gascón, Mikey Madison of "Anora" and Pamela Anderson for "The Last Showgirl."

That surprisingly left out some big names. Angelina Jolie ("Maria") missed out, as did Nicole Kidman ("Babygirl"). A few of the most acclaimed actresses of the year, Marianne Jean-Baptiste ("Hard Truths") and Globe-winner Fernanda Torres ("I’m Still Here"), also were overlooked.

"The Last Showgirl" had more to celebrate, too, with an unexpected nomination for Jamie Lee Curtis in supporting female actor. Her fellow nominees are: Barbaro, Grande, Danielle Deadwyler ("The Piano Lesson") and Zoe Saldana ("Emilia Perez").

Jeremy Strong was nominated for his supporting performance as Roy Cohn in the Donald Trump film "The Apprentice," but his co-star, Sebastian Stan, went unnominated for both "The Apprentice" and "A Different Man." The other nominees for best supporting male actor were: Bailey, Norton, Yura Borisov ("Anora") and the category frontrunner, Kieran Culkin ("A Real Pain").

A few widely forecast supporting performance were snubbed there, too, including Denzel Washington ("Gladiator II") and Guy Pearce ("The Brutalist").

The SAG Awards are among the most closely watched Oscar bellwethers. Their picks don’t always align exactly with those of the film academy, but they often do.

The last three best ensemble winners — "Oppenheimer,Everything Everywhere All at Once,CODA" — all went on to win best picture at the Academy Awards. All but one of the SAG acting winners of the last three years has also won at the Oscars. The sole exception was Lily Gladstone, who won SAG’s award for female actor last year for "Killers of the Flower Moon," but the Oscar trophy went to Emma Stone ("Poor Things") at the Oscars.

While some overlooked performances might still land an Oscar nomination, any eventual Academy Award winner, including the best picture recipient, is almost surely coming from those nominated Wednesday. That's bad news for "The Brutalist," which triumphed at the Globes but missed out on a SAG ensemble nomination.

The Screen Actors Guild Awards will be held Feb. 23 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. The ceremony, to be hosted by Kristen Bell. will be streamed live on Netflix. In addition to the competitive awards, Jane Fonda will be presented with the guild’s Life Achievement Award.