Just 15 days before she could have added a long-awaited individual world title to her decorated resume, reigning Olympic 200m champion Gabby Thomas announced she will not be competing in Tokyo.
According to a press release, the 28-year-old has been dealing with an Achilles injury since May, and it has only worsened since. “I understand that it will be disappointing for some track fans to hear this news,” Thomas said. “But I’ve finally come to the realization that it’s OK to be human and take care of myself.
“As an athlete, you always want to keep grinding, but sometimes you simply can’t outwork an injury,” Thomas continued. “Sometimes, it’s about patience and making the right decision for the long term. All the best to my Team USA teammates fighting for medals in Tokyo.”
Despite the injury, the triple Olympic gold medallist (200m, 4x100m, 4x400m) was ranked #4 in the world this year; at nationals in June, Thomas placed third in a very deep 200m field to secure the final spot on Team USA for the world championships. Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, the world leader in the 100m and #2 in the 200m, swept both events at nationals; she’ll aim to upgrade her Olympic 100m bronze to gold–or even pull off the sprint double.
The remaining spots on Team USA will be taken by four-time Diamond League meeting winner Anavia Battle, who placed second at nationals, and 200m Olympic bronze medallist Brittany Brown. Brown initially missed out on a spot on the team after her fourth-place finish at nationals, crossing just one thousandth of a second behind Thomas, but secured the wild card spot with her Diamond League Final win in Zürich last week.
The stacked American squad will have to battle it out with Saint Lucia’s first-ever Olympic medallist and current world 200m leader Julien Alfred, who took 100m gold and 200m silver last year in Paris.
The women’s 200m competition will begin in Tokyo on Sept. 17; semi-finals and the final will take place on Sept. 18 and 19, respectively.
