"I wrote down every morning that I will be Olympic champion"-Gabby Thomas reveals secret behind winning three gold medals at Paris Olympics 2024

Gabby Thomas recently appeared in an interview after the Paris Olympics, where she divulged her race strategy. She proved her prowess as a formidable athlete by delivering victorious performances at the 2024 Summer Games. The American sprinter won three gold medals in Paris, in the women's 200m, 4x100m relay, and 4x400m relay.

In the 200m, she cruised towards a smooth victory and clocked a blistering time of 21.83s, leaving behind Saint Lucia's Julien Alfred, who clocked 22.08s, and Brittany Brown, who recorded 22.20s. She delivered a similarly dominant performance in the 4x100m relay and 4x400m relay dashes.

After showcasing her incredible talent in Paris, Thomas appeared on the CBS Mornings interview, where she opened up on the secret of her running success. She spoke about the power of "self-talk", adding she told herself she was already the Olympic champion before racing.

Thomas said (via CBS):

"I am building my self-talk. I'm building my confidence in that moment. I am telling myself that I am already the Olympic champion. I wrote down over and over every morning, while I was in Paris, that I will be the Olympic champion - in my notes app - over and over and I envisioned the race all day, every day, imagining myself winning and crossing the line in front." [1:00]

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Gabby Thomas opened up on 200m win at the Paris Olympics

Gabby Thomas put in a dominant performance in the 200m dash by becoming the Olympic champion, on August 6, 2024, in Paris. Following the race, she opened up about her win in a post-race interview, sharing she was excited and in disbelief.

"It's an unbelievable feeling," Gabby Thomas said. "It's indescribable, I’m so excited. If I didn’t get this gold medal today I don’t know what I would have done. I’m really in disbelief because having an Olympic gold medal is something in my wildest dreams. But at the same time I know how hard I’ve fought for it" (via The Hindu).

The 27-year-old athlete added:

"This has been six years in the making, head down, working hard, going to really hard meets, pushing yourself, and now it's here and I've done it. This is the happiest moment of my life."

Talking about her race, Thomas further added that she did her best and wasn't aware of her competitors' positions during the race:

"I don’t think it could have gone any better. My coach told me the only thing I need is to get the lead and finish strong and I did that. I couldn't tell you where my competitors were in that race because I locked out and when I crossed the line that's the only thing I can remember."

Apart from the 2024 Olympics' gold medals, Gabby Thomas also won a silver and a bronze in the 4x100m relay and the 200m at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.