USA’s Gabby Thomas clinched the bronze medal in the 200m event at the mega-quadrennial games. Coming into the Olympics, Gabby was one of the favorites to win the gold. She had recorded the world’s second-fastest time at the Olympics Trials. Although she reached the podium, winning the bronze medal, she couldn’t grab the gold.
Simone Biles’s withdrawal from the mega-event showcases how external issues affect the athletes. Gabby, too, had a tough time getting used to the new environment.
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Many athletes faced issues because of extreme heat conditions in Japan. There were cases of athletes fainting or withdrawing because of the difficulty.
Jet Lag became a problem for Gabby Thomas
24-year-old, American star Gabby reached Tokyo with hopes to win the gold. Although she did not win the gold; she returned home with two Olympic medals.
In conversation with The Undefeated, Thomas talked about her jet lag issues. According to her, they cannot take jet lag lightly, it exhausts the athlete traveling from so far.
Shedding some light on jet lag, she said, ?We had to travel really far to Tokyo, so that jet lag is really no joke,? she said. ?And it?s such a fast track that it takes a lot of time to recover from it because what you?re exerting into the track, you?re also getting back into your body. So the recovery that day was very difficult for me.”
Although Gabby tried to recover from the tiredness, it was not a cakewalk. But, she fought through it to reach the podium.
“I tried to kind of cruise the first round, but when I came back to the semis, I was exhausted. I could have fallen asleep on the track if they let me. Just fighting through that was really tough,? she said.
Gabby faced a health issue before Tokyo Olympics 2020
Gabby Thomas joined the Buford Bailey Track Club to reach the Olympic Games. Thomas rigorously practiced for the Olympic trials with her eyes set on the Olympic podium.
However, shocking news came when she went to get her hamstring tested. The focus of the test was her hamstrings but during the MRI, doctors found a tumor in her liver. Hearing the word ‘ cancer’ petrified the now Olympic medalist.
Thankfully, the tumor did not require any surgery, and she could take part. Even after going through the medical stress, she made it to the team with the world’s second-fastest time. And then to the Olympic podium!
