'I always used to beat the little boys'—Gabby Thomas on discoverin

Gabby Thomas has risen as a sprinting powerhouse, capturing three Olympic golds and inspiring with her disciplined approach, relentless drive and ambitious goals, including aiming for the legendary 200m world record.

Triple Olympic champion Gabby Thomas has always had a deep-seated belief in her speed, a confidence built from childhood experiences that eventually led her to conquer the world stage in athletics.

The 27-year-old sprinter has become a formidable force in the track and field world, and her recent victories in the Paris Olympics—where she clinched gold in both the 4x100m and 4x400m relay events, as well as the 200m—cement her as one of the most dominant sprinters of her generation.

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Reflecting on her earliest memories of running, Thomas recalls how a simple childhood playground competition set the foundation for her belief in her natural speed.

“I have always known that I was fast, just because I always used to beat the little boys on the playground,” she told Athlos.

“But I realized that I was really fast my junior year of college. I had to have been 20 years old when I won my first NCAA title. And I realized that I could run with the fastest women in the world.”

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Winning her first NCAA title in college was a turning point, sparking the realization that she could compete at the highest levels of the sport.

From those early days of schoolyard sprints to dominating on the track as an Olympic medalist, Thomas has combined her natural talent with a relentless pursuit of excellence, pushing herself to refine every aspect of her race.

Her recent Olympic successes in Paris are just the latest in a long list of accolades, underscoring her ability to excel under pressure.

After her Olympic victories, Thomas competed in the inaugural Athlos NYC event, where she raced against fellow U.S. sprinter Brittany Brown.

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Although Brown took the lead, clocking in at 22.18 seconds, Thomas’s resilience and competitive spirit remain unshaken as she sets her sights on even greater accomplishments.

In an interview with The Guardian, Thomas opened up about her meticulous approach to training, revealing her almost scientific dedication to analyzing and perfecting her race techniques.

“I am very type A and into analyzing how I run. I’ll talk to my coach about it over and over again…the drive phase, in particular, is something we practice over and over again, meticulously. It’s very, very technical, but it sets you up for the entire race,” she explained.

Thomas’s journey has been marked by an impressive string of achievements, including her participation in the 2023 World Championships, where she not only won gold as part of the 4x100m relay team but also claimed a silver medal in the 200m.

Now, with the 2028 LA Olympics on the horizon, she has hinted at the possibility of competing once more, saying that the chance to perform in front of a home crowd would be an honor.

Beyond her training and competition, Thomas finds inspiration in track legends who have paved the way before her.

She specifically credits Allyson Felix, the legendary U.S. sprinter, as one of her role models.