Gabby Thomas revealed on Tuesday that she will miss the World Athletics Championships because of an Achilles injury.
Thomas has been dealing with the injury since May, which has continued to be an issue and it worsened in July.
“I understand that it will be disappointing for some track fans to hear this news, but I’ve finally come to the realization that it’s OK to be human and take care of myself,” Thomas said in a statement. “As an athlete you always want to keep grinding, but sometimes you simply can’t outwork an injury. 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.”
Next week’s world championships will be staged at Japan National Stadium from September 13-21 in Tokyo. Thomas, 28, earned a spot on Team USA after she took third in the women’s 200m final in 22.20 behind Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, who won in 21.84 and Anavia Battle who took second in 22.13. Thomas just edged past Brittany Brown by one thousandths of a second, as Brown took fourth in 22.20 also. Brown would later punch her ticket to Tokyo in last weeks Diamond League final in Zurich, as Thomas’ slot on Team USA will now go to McKenzie Long — who also finished in 22.20 in Eugene for fifth place in the women’s 200m.
Thomas is coming off of a solid campaign last year that saw her strike gold three times at the Paris Olympics, with wins in the 200m, 4x100m and 4x400m relays.
