At the Olympics in Paris on Tuesday, Gabby Thomas contributed to the United States regaining the lead over China in gold medals. She shocked everyone by winning the women’s 200-meter final in 21.83, besting both Brittany Brown of the United States and Julien Alfred of St. Lucia.
It was all about the American flag once she crossed the finish line and realized she had won her first-ever Olympic gold.
In a video interview with the local Atlanta station 11 Alive, Thomas stated, “There is nothing like getting that flag after you cross the line and you see the coach right there with it and everybody’s going crazy and America’s watching, it’s just such an amazing moment.”
In an interview with Vogue, Thomas stated that one of the few things she ever allowed her mind to acknowledge after finishing the race was the sight of the American flag.
“I was so focused and tunnel-visioned on what I was doing, I blocked out everything else. And just coming back into reality, seeing the photographers everywhere, getting the flag – yes, it was disorienting!” Thomas stated.
Thomas rang the Olympic bell on Tuesday with the flag slung around her shoulders.
After ringing the bell, Thomas told reporters, “It was incredible, it was so much fun, and it really just drove it home that I have an Olympic gold right now.”
Born in Atlanta and raised in a suburban area of Massachusetts, Thomas is a native American who pursued her education in Texas after graduating from Harvard. After completing her studies at Harvard in neurobiology and global health, she obtained her master’s degree in epidemiology at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston.
She also won 22 conference titles in six different track events while attending Harvard, and when she won her now-famous 200-meter race in 22.38 seconds, she became the first NCAA sprint champion in Ivy League history.
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She had finished third and second in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, but this year she seemed like a different player after setting a world record in the 200 meters in 21.78 seconds at the U.S. Olympic Trials semifinals in June.
As the United States attempts to hold onto its lead in gold medals over China, she lived up to her remarkable time by winning a significant victory for her nation in the women’s 200-meter semifinal in Paris.
The United States has won 16 medals overall in track and field this Olympics, including five golds from Thomas.
