At the London Athletics Meet 2024 Diamond League, world record holder Gabrielle Thomas emerged victorious in the women’s 200-metre event.
After her victory, the athlete said: “I feel really good. It’s made me feel confident going into the Paris Games after that one… All things considered, hopping off the plane and coming into this stadium with all these people was a really good race for me. This crowd is incredible, it’s got to be my favourite Diamond League – it’s just so fun.”
In her social media post, the athlete also declared: “What an incredible atmosphere at London Diamond League meeting… A very solid 21.8 (-0.9w) win against a very talented pool of ladies!! Not a bad way to dust off the jet lag… Now…finally off to Paris”
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Highlights of the race
Thomas got off to a strong start, but her opponent, Dina Asher-Smith, gave a lightning-fast run at the London Stadium in hopes for a British victory. During the duration of the race, Asher-Smith nailed the lead straight with an exceptional bend. However, as the metres ran out, Julien Alfred of Saint Lucia passed the 2019 world champion as she approached the finish line.
Meanwhile, Thomas also made a move around an easy turn, passing Asher-Smith initially and then overtaking Alfred at the finish line to win with a performance record of 21.82 seconds into a headwind that was pretty constant at 0.9 m/s. Fortunately, the previous record for the London Diamond League meet, held by Jamaican Elaine Thompson-Herah (22.10 from 2015), was broken by Thomas.
Thomas, who is expected to be one of Shericka Jackson’s main rivals at the Olympic Games in Paris, performed an impressive feat to achieve her success.
Source: Olympics.com