Gabby Thomas says Austin was key to Olympic success

Track star Gabby Thomas, the Olympic sprinter who relocated to Austin after graduating from Harvard in 2019, is gearing up for Paris.

Why it matters: Thomas, who earned bronze in the 200-meter race and silver in the 4x100 relay in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, has been training in Austin ahead of her return to the world stage.

Driving the news: Just last weekend , Thomas broke the London Diamond League 200-meter meet record in 21.82 seconds, overtaking the competition in the final moments of the race.

• "I feel really good," Thomas told reporters after the race. "It's made me feel confident going into the Paris Games after that one."

Zoom in: Thomas spoke to Axios ahead of the Paris Olympics about her life in Austin and how it's shaped her as a runner.

What they're saying: "Austin was just a completely different ballgame. … I went from being a big fish in a small pond to being a little fish in a big pond," Thomas told Axios at the Team USA Media Summit. "That was a big adjustment for me, but it forced me to get better at track and it forced me to raise the bar."

• "It's the reason I'm an Olympian today. I don't think I would be an Olympian or an Olympic medalist if I had stayed in Boston, and that's just the truth of it," Thomas added.

Flashback: Thomas moved to Austin to join the Buford Bailey Track Club , the professional running group coached by former UT coach and Olympian Tonja Buford-Bailey.

• "It was something so special about being in a group of Black women and having a Black coach because I could really see myself in their shoes," Thomas told Runners World earlier this year. "I felt like I could do what they were doing."
• In between her training, Thomas finished her Master of Public Health from the University of Texas and researched disparities in sleep disorders . She's said prioritizing her own sleep helps her achieve her goals on the track.

What to watch: Thomas holds the record as the fourth-fastest woman in the 200-meter, and she's considered one of the biggest challengers to world champion Shericka Jackson of Jamaica in Paris.

• The opening ceremony begins at 12:30pm Friday.
• Olympic track and field events will be held Aug. 1-11 .

Dig deeper: Summer Olympics marks historic moment for gender equity