SAINT-DENIS, France — A star hasn’t been born in the realm of American track and field. This is more a blossoming.
Gabby Thomas has been methodically and consistently growing into an Olympic champion. If she seems an ideal star, it’s because she’s been marinating, slow-cooking to perfection. This moment has been prepared with attention to detail and diligence.
She knows who she is and who she wants to be. She knows why she’s here. She knows what she wants to do. She’s put in the work, maximizing her talent. She’s accumulated experience. She’s been patient, waiting for her time, not skipping steps.
At Stade de France, before a raucous crowd at Tuesday’s nightcap, it all came together for Thomas. She took the gold medal in the women’s 200-meter final, cresting a mountain she’s been climbing for years now with a time of 21.82.
There will be no more overlooking Gabrielle Lisa Thomas. No more denying her belonging with the best of American track.
It was always likely to take the best race of Thomas’ life to become the Olympic champ. Even without Jamaican star Shericka Jackson, who has been inching closer to Florence Griffith-Joyner’s world record but pulled out of the race, Thomas winning gold meant reaching a new level of spectacular.
The 100-meter champion Julien Alfred of Saint Lucia was still in the field. Great Britain’s Daryll Neita and Dina Asher-Smith were still in the field. Not to mention America’s own sleepers in Brittany Brown and McKenzie Long.
Gabby Thomas celebrates by ringing the bell after winning the Women’s 200m. (Photo: Michael Steele / Getty Images)
She beat them all, including Alfred, who took silver.
But if anyone could summon something extra, it was Thomas, the class of America in the 200 meters. She had experience on massive stages, having already won a bronze in the event at the Tokyo Games and a silver at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest. She was trending towards gold.
At 27 years old, she’s in her athletic prime, and it shows in her steady form, smooth handling of turns and elite top-end speed.
GO DEEPER
Gabby Thomas, Olympic 200-meter favorite, is firmly in the spotlight — and ready for it
More than that, Thomas is game for a fight. She’s a battler.
It’s not the first impression she gives. She knows people see the pretty face and kind smile, hear about the Harvard education, her passion for equity in the healthcare industry, and assume she’s not a beast. They tend to underestimate her toughness.
Thomas loves ruining that perception.
Off the track, she’s as marketable as they come, as much as she’s willing to take advantage. With diverse interests and talents, and an inspiring story, she’s an easy endorser for the likes of New Balance and Sephora, and now as the face of Alexis Ohanian’s new women’s track event ATHLOS.
On the track, Thomas is a bully. She is fast enough to attack the first 100 meters, when the speedsters might want to save some energy. And she’s strong enough to have plenty in the tank to turn it up down the stretch. She comes out of the turns bent on obliteration, those long strides swallowing up the track. Her top-end speed doesn’t rival 100-meter sprinters. But the 200 is about speed and endurance. It’s about how long you can be fast.
Thomas had to fight for this one. But she was ready for it. She was groomed for it. Now she’s a champion. America has a new track superstar.
Required reading
(Photo: Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
