Video Shows Olympian Gabby Thomas Harassed by Gambler During Philly Track Meet

• Gambler brags about heckling Thomas to influence betting outcome
• Social media videos show harassment before and after her race
• Sports betting surge linked to athlete abuse, study finds

Three-time Olympic gold medalist Gabby Thomas was “followed around the track” by a gambler who heckled and abused her, apparently in an effort to negatively impact her performance so he could win a bet. The man later bragged about his actions on social media.

The incident occurred at last weekend’s Grand Slam Track meet in Philadelphia. On Monday, June 2, an X user named “Mr 100k a Day” wrote in a reply to a post by Thomas that he “made Gabby lose by heckling her. And it made my parlay win.”

He posted an accompanying video clip of himself shouting at the US track-and-field athlete as she prepared to race in the women’s 100-meter dash, calling her a “choke athlete” and referencing that she has a white fiancé.

Continued Harassment

Mr 100K a Day also showed screenshots of two separate bets he had made on FanDuel, which showed he had won more than $1K in parlay bets on races that included the 100-meter dash, in which Thomas finished fourth.

He posted a second video showing his continued harassment of the athlete as she interacted with fans after the race.

This grown man followed me around the track as I took pictures and signed autographs for fans (mostly children) shouting personal insults – anybody who enables him online is gross,” Thomas wrote in response.

“Honestly the heckling is tolerable,” she added. “It’s following me around the stadium that’s wild.”

“Grand Slam Track is conducting a full investigation into the reprehensible behavior captured on video,” the track league said in a statement. “We are working to identify the individual involved and will take appropriate action as necessary.”

Athlete Abuse

The boom in sports betting across America has been accompanied by a troubling rise in abuse directed at athletes. A recent NCAA study found that one in three high-profile college athletes had received abusive messages from individuals with a “betting interest.”

Two years later, in 2021, Ben “Parlay” Patz was placed on probation for three years for making similar threats toward players from multiple sports teams after his wagers failed.