Team USA sprinter Gabby Thomas delivered on her promise after clinching gold in the 200m women's final on Tuesday.
Thomas, 27, won her first-ever Olympic gold after clocking in at 21.83 seconds, beating St Lucia's Julien Alfred who won gold in the women's 100m final on Saturday. Thomas has now completed her goal after settling for bronze in the 200m final at the Tokyo Olympics and still has the chance to win another medal for Team USA in the 4x100m relay.
After winning bronze in 2021, Thomas spoke out about her performance in the final of the 200m and told fans she'd be "fighting" for the gold medal in Paris. She said: "Paris 2024, I want to go for that gold, so you will see me there. I will be fighting for it."
In Tokyo, Thomas faced a major battle to make the podium and just managed to finish third, although it was clear that fatigue had played a part in the final meters of that race. "The last 30 meters of that race were a battle, I had to fight tooth and nail for that one," Thomas said.
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"But I just remembered what my coach had told me before, which was to stay relaxed and stay composed. When I crossed the line I wasn't sure if I came in third, fourth, or fifth, so to see that I came in third and got my medal, I was ecstatic."
Thomas was labeled as "Wonder Woman" by Team USA following her bronze medal finish in Tokyo, but she's evolved in the years leading up to Paris. After receiving her first gold medal Thomas admitted that she'd been dreaming of this moment for years, but never expected it to come true.
"I’ve envisioned this race in my head so many times over and over, as I do with every race," Thomas explained. "That’s how I win races. But I did not expect to feel how I felt when I crossed that line.
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"You prepare for this moment and train so hard for this moment but when it actually comes, it’s indescribable. I never would have imagined in my wildest dreams that I would become an Olympic gold medalist and I am one. I’m still wrapping my head around that."
While Thomas is one of the best sprinters in the world, she has a ritual before races that hasn't gone unnoticed by other athletes. Fellow Team USA sprinter McKenzie Long, who came seventh on Tuesday, revealed that Thomas hops up and down in the call room before racing.
“I do it before every race in the call room, I do 10 because I need to keep my heart rate up,” Thomas admitted when being asked about the hopping routine. "It is really embarrassing but it clearly works."
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