Gabby Thomas ended her Paris outing as one of her brightest seasons so far. The 28-year-old took the track by storm by clinching not one but a total of 3 Olympic gold medals. Such a performance cemented her legacy as one of the greatest athletes in the sporting discipline. Following her Paris triumph, Thomas had been showered with some exclusive accolades. One of them is her getting named among the top 7 end-of-the-year award winners by USATF. And while the triple Olympic champion is enjoying the glitz and glamour at the moment, a lot of young athletes are aspiring to follow in her footsteps. 

Unfortunately, becoming a champion athlete is not as easy as it seems. While we often see the end result, the failures, toils, and hardships are usually hidden in the shadows. And this was the same for Thomas too. Speaking on ‘The Running Effect Podcast’ in January 2024, the 28-year-old sprinter became candid about the challenges she has faced en route to her days of glory. Going down memory lane, Thomas reminisced about the very first NCAA championship run in her sophomore year. 

The Olympic gold medalist stated that going into the tournament, she felt quite confident. Unfortunately, when it was time for the actual race to unfold, Thomas flipped. She had a dismal run and finished in last position! Such a setback significantly pegged back the morale of the 28-year-old. She knew that she would have to go through an agonizing year to get another chance and set things right. Sharing her feelings after her loss in her NCAA days, Thomas stated in the podcast, “I felt like I prepared for it. Then I went and raced, and I just got dead last. It was really, really embarrassing. I was like, I don’t know how this happened. I just literally lost. It was so embarrassing. I couldn’t have imagined that happening to me, but it did.”. She further also added, “For me, yeah, I lost that race, and I think because it was so high-profile and so embarrassing, it really motivated me.”

However, soon the sprinter realized that failure can often turn out to be the biggest motivator. Throwing light on her coping mechanism, and how she later felt, Gabby said, “That was a moment for me to take a step back and be like, ‘Okay, I just lost.’ And but I had to sit with that loss for an entire year. Like, for a year, I was a loser, and I had to go back to the drawing board, fix whatever went wrong, sit with myself, and figure it out.”

For the next year, Gabby Thomas felt terrible. After all, the feeling of dissatisfaction and disappointment probably would have come back to haunt her every other day. And despite turning up for practice every day, her next stop looked quite far away. This made her rethink her decision to become a professional track and field athlete. Going through a dark phase, the 3x Olympic gold medalist recalled, “Like I was in a really dark place, and I had to go to practice every single day not knowing if I was gonna have another opportunity to win that race again. Not knowing if I was going to ever run fast again. That’s, it’s just every single day you have to have a whole new, like, emotional, and mental, physical battle with yourself.”

Thankfully, all these waits turned out to be fruitful for Thomas. Coming back ever so strongly the next year, Thomas announced herself to the track world by claiming the victory. And this was the beginning of the many victories that the decorated Olympian can boast of at present. Thus, having gone through a dark phase herself, Gabby Thomas knows how hard it is to follow one’s dreams. However, despite the struggles, she is still an active advocate for the same. 

Gabby Thomas has a strong message for upcoming budding athletes

Gabby Thomas recently attended the 2024 USATF Annual Meeting in Florida. Getting felicitated for her incredible work in the track and field realm, Thomas did not forget to leave a word of inspiration for the young sprinters. Taking a leaf out of her book, the Olympian mentioned how she was doubted by many. She also reflected on the setbacks and detailed how she was able to overcome them. “Believe in yourself. When I was younger, I had big dreams too. Dreams that oftentimes scared me because I felt like they were too far away. But here’s what I want you to know. You are capable of far more than you can imagine,” Thomas stated. 

The 28-year-old also stated that the world will always try to bring you down. It will ask the dreamers to become realistic. However, the stark reality was, “Your dreams, no matter how big they are, are valid,” according to Thomas. And it was not only through her speech that Thomas was trying to help the upcoming generation. She also became an advocate for better pay for female athletes. Thomas became the face of Athlos NYC, which is focused on providing better pay for female athletes. Thus, overcoming the odds, Gabby Thomas has now established herself as one of the most shining stars in the track and field sky.