SAINT-DENIS – Before Gabby Thomas set foot on the Stade de France's purple track, surrounded by 80,000 or so screaming spectators, her coach gave her some last-minute advice.
“The only thing I needed to do was get the lead. Get the lead and then finish strong,” Thomas said, recounting Tonja Buford-Bailey's counsel. “And I did that.”
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She sure did. Following precisely that easier-said-than-done plan, Thomas, a 27-year-old Harvard grad, sped to the victory in the women’s 200 meters at the 2024 Olympics on Tuesday night, finishing in 21.83 seconds to add a gold to the bronze she took home in the event from Tokyo three years ago.
“I don't think,” Thomas said, “it could have gone any better.”
She burst into the lead for good at the curve and was never challenged down the stretch, finishing well clear of 100-meter champion Julien Alfred of St. Lucia, who was 0.25 seconds off the pace in 22.08.
After Thomas crossed the line, she shouted and placed both of her hands on her head, looking every bit like someone enjoying what she called “the happiest moment of my life.”
“I couldn't tell you where my competitors were in that race, because I blacked out,” Thomas said.
That's one explanation. Another would be that there was no one really all that near her.
Brittany Brown of the U.S. got the bronze in 22.20, 0.02 seconds in front of Dina Asher-Smith of Britain, who was another hundredth of a second ahead of teammate Daryll Neita.
“I'm happy. There's nothing I can complain about," Alfred said. "I just know I went out there and gave my best.”
Out of three sprints so far on the purple track at Stade de France, the Americans have picked up two golds: Thomas' triumph followed Noah Lyles' success in the men's 100 on Sunday night by a far slimmer margin: five thousands of a second.
“It really was so inspiring, hearing Noah go after what he wanted and take it,” Thomas said. “I knew that if I were in any position in this race, I could still go after it and take it if I had to.”
Ask a teammate what about Thomas is most impressive, and “poise” is a word that comes up.
“She’s very much an empowerment woman. She carries a lot of power. You can tell by how she carries herself,” said McKenzie Long, a 24-year-old who finished seventh Tuesday. “She reminds me of me — but an older version.”
After she earned her degree at Harvard in neurobiology and global health, Thomas enrolled at the University of Texas, where she got a Masters in public health for studying sleep patterns of different ethnic groups — while also making the wise choice to double down on her track training.
The decision was to set up a six-year schedule, with the long-term aim being this cool evening in the City of Light. Thomas didn't want the Paris Games to be her first Olympics, so she did what it took to get herself to Tokyo three years ago.
That happened — and her takeaways from that trip to Japan were third place in the 200, a silver medal in the 4x100 relay, plus, maybe most valuable of all, the experience.
“I feel like I’ve worked very hard, and everything has been a part of the plan. This has been a six-year plan, ever since moving to Texas,” Thomas explained. “We've been working hard every day for this, so I earned it. But it’s still an unbelievable, indescribable feeling.”
She came in as one of the favorites, especially after reigning world champion Shericka Jackson of Jamaica dropped out because of an apparent injury.
And this one really wasn't even close, it turned out.
Even Alfred, who also went to Texas and won the first Olympic medal for her island country in the 100 three nights earlier, didn't stand a chance against Thomas on this night.
“You can't take a gold medal away. This is all I wanted," Thomas said. "If I didn't get this gold medal today, I don't know what I would have done.”
And she isn't done. She'll have a chance for another medal as part of the 4x100 relay team, which could be in the final Saturday.
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AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games