Gabby Thomas has explained why Shericka Jackson's withdrawal from the women's 200m final did not make it easy for her to win the race.
Gabby Thomas has revealed that the withdrawal of Shericka Jackson did not make it easy for her to win the women’s 200m at the Paris Olympics.
Jackson withdrew from the race last minute, with her coach Stephen Francis noting that she was not confident in her speed and race execution, the reason behind her withdrawal.
The Jamaican sprint queen was a threat to medaling chances following her skillful execution of the 200m and it has always been referred to as her race. She is the reigning world champion and she achieved the honours after beating Thomas to second place in the race.
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However, Thomas has insisted that her absence from the race did not contribute to her win and since she had worked hard all season and was confident in her abilities.
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“I have been doing really well in the 200m all season so I wouldn’t say that I was relieved when Shericka pulled out. I wished her all the best and it was unfortunate that you can’t have your reigning world champion competing,” Thomas said in a post-race interview.
“I was confident before that and I was confident going into the race. I didn’t realise that I had won this race until I crossed the line. I knew that I was going to execute until the finish line. I had the Olympic champion running next to me and Brittany was also next to me. The race wasn’t over until it was over,” she added.
In the race, Thomas clocked a stunning 21.83 to cross the finish line ahead of reigning Olympic 100m champion Julien Alfred. Another American, Brittany Brown finished third in the race.
The Great Britain duo of Dina Asher-Smith and Daryll Neita finished fourth and fifth respectively in the hotly contested race.
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