Securing the title of the fourth-fastest woman in history for the 200m is no small feat. And Gabby Thomas has made her mark with a 21.60-second performance in July 2023. With two Tokyo Games medals to her name already, she’s clearly on the fast track to sports superstardom and gunning for the Paris Olympics. This 27-year-old American star recently, on July 20, clocked a 21.82 at the London Diamond League 2024, showing what is expected to come at the Paris Olympics. However, just five days before the Olympics, a video of hers has resurfaced, potentially shaking up the track and field world.

The Voice of Our Ancestors channel, on July 18th, shared a heartfelt video of Gabby Thomas’s interview on X. Originally, this video was from July 2023, before the Monaco Diamond League and after setting the world lead. In the video, she was celebrating her Jamaican heritage, and even revealed her secret weapon!

“I made sure everyone knew that I was Jamaican because I believed that’s where my speed came from. I was not going to sugarcoat it because that was the truth,” she revealed. As is evident from her words, her ethnicity might be giving her the upper hand over other track athletes.

According to reports, scientists have investigated the genetics behind Jamaican sprinters’ dominance, which is the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene. The “D allele” variant of this gene is linked to a larger heart that pumps oxygenated blood more efficiently. Which ultimately improves sprinting performance and training response. This variant is more common among West Africans but is even more prevalent in Jamaica, which might be one reason for their exceptional pace, such as Usain Bolt’s.

While hard work and dedication are definitely part of the secret recipe, the folks of the island country are also said to more fast-twitch muscle fibers, giving them the upper hand in sprinting.

For Gabby Thomas, it’s this very background that she never forgets. Not even remotely. “My grandfather is Jamaican and lives there. Even though my dad didn’t grow up in Jamaica, he is Jamaican and has always ensured that our home is infused with our culture. He made sure I grew up with a strong sense of pride in being Jamaican,” she shared. Perhaps, it is this same deep-rooted connection to her heritage that also fuels her athletic journey.

However, the work is not yet done. Olympic Trials’ domination aside, will she be able to hold on to that same form in Paris? Especially with another Jamaican star more ready than ever?

Gabby Thomas might have broken the ice at trials, but her rival’s recovery can turn the tables in Paris

“I think it’s in reach for Shericka. “I think it’s in reach for me at the Olympics, if the conditions are right,” said Gabby Thomas, when asked if she can break Flo Jo’s 36-year-old record of 21.34 seconds set at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

On the other hand, if you ask Jackson, she’s not letting the record stay untouched for long. “Coach and I have spoken and we are going after (the record) this year. I hope to get it,” she said in a conversation with Citrus Mag, back in March this year.

Thomas might have stolen the show at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for track and field on June 29, but she knows her biggest rival, Shericka Jackson is not too be taken lightly either. After all, Jackson didn’t let Thomas’s world-leading 200m time of 21.60 from July 9, 2023, rest on its laurels for long. Just a month later, the Jamaican star sprinter swooped in and set a new world record of 21.41 seconds, making it the second-best lead in the world.

Coming back to this year, while Thomas has posted 21.78 seconds, Jackson’s season-best is 22.29 seconds. But Jackson’s recent Achilles tendon injury at the Hungarian Athletics Grand Prix on July 10 could throw a wrench into her plans. As of now, there are no updates of the status of her injury, but a silence also means she might be working overtime to clinch it all this summer. Yet to win an Olympic gold, she’s optimistic: “I’ve yet to achieve an Olympic gold medal so definitely know that’s one of the goals I want to definitely achieve.”

As for Thomas, it’s like a dream come true. Coming with a degree in neurobiology from Harvard, she wasn’t even sure if the Olympics was her treading ground: “I wasn’t even close to an Olympian. Nobody was talking about me making the Olympic team. So when I moved down here and told people, ‘I’m training for the Olympics’, I felt like an imposter. I had never made a U.S. team before. And so I had to work and fill that gap. And I ended up filling it. And now I am an Olympian, an Olympic medallist, and a gold medal contender.”

But now that’s she in for the second successive time, Paris will surely see some magic happen. As for the Olympic roster, Thomas, Brittany Brown and McKenzie Long, both of whom set personal bests, will represent the U.S. in the 200 meters.

If Jackson can heal up and return to form, this Olympic face-off is sure to be a race to watch. With so much on the line, who’s your money on for the Paris Olympics? The stage is set for an epic showdown, and the world is watching.