“No Place in Sports”: Gabby Thomas Gives Reality Check After Winning 3 Track and Field Golds at Olympics

Gabby Thomas arrived at the 2024 Paris Olympics, with not just speed, but a fierce spirit. The story began in June when she ran at the U.S. Olympic Trials and went on to clock 21.81 in the 200 meters – it only got better as she moved into the London Diamond League. Gabby clocked an almost identical time here with a 21.82 in the 200m. But her true pièce de résistance had not even come yet – it arrived perhaps at the most serendipitous moment, the 200m finals at the Paris Olympics!
Gabby went on to win the Gold, clocking 21.83! While the individual podium glory was all hers, she did not stop there. Gabby Thomas went on to run the 4×100 and 4×400 meter relays with her team. As the world has already seen, both the races ended in two very iconic Golds. Now, that makes three Olympic Golds in just one Olympic season – unstoppable, right? But Gabby is not just dominating on track; she also cannot be silenced from telling the truth.
Gabby Thomas spills some controversial tea!
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While the wins in Paris will go down in history, Gabby Thomas had an unpopular take to get off her chest. Gabby was recently on the Why Not Me? With Mike Jackson’s podcast, where she went on to expose the downfalls of certain habits in sports culture. The point of contention this time was participation trophies. “Real participation trophies—oh gosh,” she started off, already sounding rather exasperated, while adding, “I don’t think there’s a place for them in sport.” So why is Thomas not so fond of participation trophies?
Well, for Gabby, sports should be based on merit rather than handouts or consolation prizes; she did not mince her words when she said, “I think it is so important to teach kids to lose. Yes, and to be okay with that. Yes, and not everyone deserves a trophy. Not everyone earned a trophy. And—and there’s nothing wrong with that.” These are not mere words; they come from someone who balanced a full-on college workload with the Olympics!
Gabby Thomas played a dangerous game of tightrope when she had to balance her college and athletics. Her collegiate period began at Harvard, perhaps one of the most academically competitive schools. Gabby studied neurobiology and global health policy policy during her time there. It wasn’t easy, but she stayed in the game, even completing her degree while going pro. One would think the academic challenges might be hard, especially when one has to put so much of their time into training to be an Olympian. Well, it’s time to throw that assumption down the drain!
Soon after Harvard, Gabby went on to enroll at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston. She started her Master of public health at their Austin campus. Gabby did all of that while maintaining an Olympic training regimen. During her time doing a not-so-easy master, Gabby Thomas ran at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where she even won two Olympic medals. While Gabby was all transparent and against anything that was not Gold, some playful offense came as the interview continued.
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While third places shouldn’t exist, a bronze is debatable!
There is no doubt that Gabby Thomas was completely serious about earning your stripes as an athlete, there’s a little playful twist here. When the host Mike Jackson joined in with Gabby on the banter, he said, “You showed up, yes, you did your best… you got third place”. Gabby’s response? She raised her eyebrow with a sneaky smile and said, “I mean, on the podium ceremony, you do get gold, silver, bronze… so, you know..”. She did a playful shake with her hand, almost saying – it’s a bit debatable!
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Now, it is all in good fun and spirit, but there is a grain of truth behind what seems like a joke. Before the Paris Olympics, Gabby Thomas had other Olympic medals. But she did not have the ever so coveted Gold. The Tokyo Olympics saw her win a bronze in the 200 meters and a silver in the 4×100 relay. Even if one were to look at her more recent performances, the ones that came after Paris. There are some unfortunate moments – like Athlos, for example.
While Gabby might have been the face leading up to the race, she did not win the Gold. After three Golds, she fell from grace and had to settle for Silver. Maybe they do say that ‘there is a grain of truth in every lie’ for a reason. So, does Gabby think participation trophies have a place in the sports world? Well, the answer to that is a definite no. But when it comes to the real deal and standing on the Olympic podium, Gabby Thomas knows all too well what it takes to get to a Gold.