“This is my year. So, if I make the [Olympic] team, I want to come out with another world lead, another PB, and just show everyone that I’m ready to compete,” Gabby Thomas declared after setting a blazing world-leading time in the 200m semifinals, securing her spot in the finals at Hayward Field. The Olympic bronze medalist, who failed to qualify for the 400m team and was subsequently scratched from the event, aims to make a statement if she clinched a spot on the Olympic team. 

Thomas intends to achieve another personal best and demonstrate her readiness to compete. Now, her focus shifts to a new challenge: keeping pace with her Jamaican rivals. As they vie for spots on the team this weekend, Thomas is determined to revive her hopes and compete fiercely.

Gabby Thomas alerts on Jamaican rivalry after taking the world lead

In a recent tweet from FloTrack, they posted an interview clip of sprinter Gabby Thomas talking about how she’s keeping an eye on the Jamaica trials to scope out potential competitors. They captioned it, “Gabby Thomas says she’s touched by McKenzie Long’s story, as well as comments on keeping tabs on the Jamaican Trials.” McKenzie Long qualified with the third-fastest time, winning in the 2nd heat with a time of 22.01s. Thomas was heard in the interview saying, “I’m definitely keeping tabs on that but also trying to stay focused on what I’m doing here. I think I’m in a special position this year where I feel like I should expect to make the team and I should expect to continue to peak at the Paris Olympics as well.”

Thomas posted the fastest time in the world in the 200m event semis. She posted a time of 21.78 in the third and final heat advancing into the finals. Earlier Sha’Carri Richardson posted 21.92 in the event semis trying her personal best time. Thomas was previously scratched from the 400m race but she’s confident about her chances to make it to the team in the 200m. She said, “I was really happy with that [semi-final]; that felt like a very smooth and easy run for me and I didn’t really know what to expect,” adding, “So, to see that kind of time, something that felt so nice and controlled… is a good feeling.” Alongside this she’s keeping a keen eye on the Jamaica trials results to gauge the competition. 

The rivalry between Shericka Jackson and Gabby Thomas is quite justified. The two have gone head to head on multiple occasions exchanging the world lead amongst themselves. Gabby holds the personal best of 21.60s while Jackson has a time of 21.41s, which is just a fraction of a second slower than the current world record. It will be exciting to watch them compete in the Paris Stadium. On the other side of the world, in Jamaica, Shericka Jackson has already punched her ticket to Paris.

The sprinter came first in the 100m meet, clocking in at a time of 10.84s which is her season’s best. If Jackson and Gabby make the 200m team for their respective countries, the two will take to the track side-by-side. However, first in the USA finals, Gabby Thomas will have to go up against Abby Steiner, Brittany Brown, Tamari Davis, Tamara Clark, Jenna Prandini, and Jadyn Mays.

Gabby Thomas gearing up for another Olympic team qualification 

Gabby Thomas made the brave decision of skipping out on her final senior season of college eligibility at Harvard, to focus on the Olympics. She’s also narrowed down the events she wants to participate in saying, “Sitting out the first half of trials took a lot of discipline and patience so that I can run a really good 200”. Last year she clocked at 21.60s at this same Hayward Field venue in Eugene, Oregon, in the 2021 U.S. Championships to confirm her berth on Team USA for Worlds. This paid off as she earned a bronze medal in the 200m race.

She was also instrumental in helping the US win a silver medal in the 4x100m relay. Furthermore, in 2023, she placed second in the 200m at the debut World Championship and won gold in the 400m relay. Before her withdrawal from the Jamaican trials, Elaine Thompson-Herah was set to be one of Gabby Thomas’ greatest competitors. Thompson-Herah was the 200m gold winner in both the 2016 and 2021 Olympics. Now Thomas’ biggest competitor from Jamaica is Shericka Jackson who is yet to participate in the 200m trials.

However, there is also the threat of Tia Clayton who took the 2nd position in the Jamaica 100m trials with a time of 10.90s, and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce who took the third place with a time of 10.94s. This will be Fraser-Pryce’s fifth Olympic team. As Jackson aims to break Florence Griffith-Joyner’s longstanding 200m record of 21.34s, Gabby Thomas’s goal is to defeat Jackson. She also hopes to break the record herself along the way.