Gabby Thomas ’19 Wins Historic Gold in Commanding 200 Meter Race in Paris

Gabby Thomas ’19 soared to victory in the 200 meter sprint at the 2024 Paris Olympics Tuesday, becoming the first Harvard alumnus to win an Olympic gold medal in track and field in over 100 years.

After a strong start, Thomas quickly gained ground through the turn and extended her lead in the final 100 meters, finishing in 21.82 seconds, ahead of Julien Alfred of Saint Lucia and teammate Brittany Brown.

The win marked the first gold for Thomas, who won a bronze medal in the 200 meter race and a silver in the 4 x 100 meter relay for Team USA at the Tokyo Games.

The Northampton, Mass. native was the favorite entering the race. Before the Games, she had put up the fastest time this season, running a ​21.78 at Olympic Trials and a 21.60 at the 2023 USA Championships — a personal best and the fourth fastest time ever in the event.

Thomas was not without competition though.

Jamaican runner Shericka Jackson has been putting in breathtaking time over the last few years — recording a personal best of 21.41 in the World Athletics Championships in 2023 and beating out Thomas for the gold.

But minutes before the first round of racing, Jackson dropped out of the 200 meter event, citing a calf cramp from earlier in the month.

The focus suddenly narrowed onto Thomas and Julien Alfred — who had breezed into a gold medal in the 100 meter race the day before.

Both women led their heats handily — looking cool and collected as they ran — and moved on to the semifinals the next day.

Thomas secured a spot in the final with a blazing time of 21.86, putting her at the top of the leaderboard during the semifinals, but Alfred won her heat again and recorded the second best time of 21.98.

When Alfred and Thomas lined up Tuesday, they were both ready to flex their full potential for the first time in the event at these Games.

This dominance came as no surprise to anyone who watched Thomas when she competed for the Crimson. Across her three years at Harvard, Thomas was named an All-American seven times. At the 2018 NCAA indoor championships, Thomas became the first athlete in Ivy League history to win an NCAA sprinting championship by setting a then-collegiate record time of 22.38 in the event.

During the 2015-16 season, her freshman year, she was named to the first team All-America in the 200 meters. Additionally, she was chosen as a member of the All-Ivy League first team for a historic seven events that year.

After setting both Harvard and Ivy League records in the outdoor 100 meters, outdoor 200 meters, and indoor 60 meters, Thomas competed in the 2016 USA Track & Field Olympic trials and placed sixth overall in the 200 meters.

In her sophomore campaign, Thomas continued to turn up the heat. She achieved a new personal best of 11.24 in the 100m and came in third at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Thomas was yet again named to the first team All-Ivy League in several events: 100 meters, 200 meters, Long Jump, 4x100 meter relay, and 4x400 meter relay. Her strong performances culminated in her earning the honor of U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Northeast Region Women’s Track Athlete of the Year.

Thomas’ coach, Kebba Tolbert, spoke about working with Thomas throughout college — calling her “very talented,” but also “very, very driven.”

Tolbert said he wanted to help Thomas understand how to use her talent when he coached her and he watched Thomas become a “student of the sport” over her four years.

“I think that paid dividends for years and continues to to this day,” Tolbert said.

Five years after Thomas graduated, Tolbert says it’s exciting to see a former student develop from “a very good high school athlete to one of the very, very best in the world.”

But he also noted that despite the “evolution” Thomas has gone through to achieve on such a high level, she’s managed to keep some things the same.

“She’s still kept her core self intact,” Tolbert said.

Tolbert also spoke about what Thomas’ achievements mean to Harvard’s track and field team. He said her presence on an international stage is exciting for her former teammates and proves that a Harvard sprinter can be at the top of her sports.

“To have people in the Olympics doing well shows that the Ivy League is Division I,” Tolbert said. “You can come and get an amazing education, to get a world class education, and compete at the highest levels.”

“There’s no sacrifice,” he added.

Thomas may be the only sprinter from Harvard at the Paris Games, but her achievement comes during an impressive year for Harvard’s Olympians.

Thomas’s gold brings Harvard’s total medal count to 10, including 5 gold medals, 2 silver medals, and 3 bronze medals — the most overall medals since the 1896 Games.

Next up for the Crimson is Graham Blanks ’25, who is competing in the men’s 5000 meters heat tomorrow morning, Wednesday, August 7 at 5:10 a.m. ET.

—Staff writer Jo B. Lemann can be reached at jo.lemann@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @Jo_Lemann.

–Staff writer Praveen Kumar can be reached at praveen.kumar@thecrimson.com.