American sprinter Gabby Thomas won her first Olympic gold medal in the 2024 Paris Games women's 200-meter final on Tuesday — an accomplishment that she credits, in part, to her second job.
The 27-year-old, who took home bronze and silver during her Olympic debut at the Tokyo games, balances her career as an Olympian with a job in health care.
Thomas holds a bachelor's degree in neurobiology from Harvard University and a master's degree in public health from the University of Texas Health Science Center.
In the months leading up to the Games, Thomas trained three to six hours a day, but at night, she worked at an Austin volunteer health-care clinic for people without insurance.
The Atlanta, Georgia native told NBC News that having a career outside of track has played a critical role in her success as a professional athlete.
"The way I became successful in track and field was basically running track part-time," she said. "And I think for me that's really important for my mental health, just having other things in my life that helped fulfill, you know, my goals and make me feel fulfilled."
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Speaking to Olympics.com ahead of the race, Thomas reiterated that having a second career sharpens her focus and helps her decompress from the constant grind of training.
"I think I'm just so grateful to get to do what I love," Thomas told Olympics.com. "I think about it all the time, and even after a hard day at the track, when I'm tired and wheezing from practice, I'm just like, 'I'm so grateful to be doing what I love and to be able to do it for a living.'"
She added: "And then I get to go to the clinic and volunteer and make a difference in people's lives. So I feel so fulfilled, and I feel so passionate about everything I do. And [that all] really just comes from gratitude."
Although Thomas has ambitions to compete in Los Angeles in 2028 — and win more medals — she said she has an even bigger goal in mind: running a hospital or nonprofit to democratize information and access to health care.
"I hope that I'm doing the same thing I'm doing now, which is letting my passions drive me," she told NBC News.
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