Implementing Runnable interface inherits Thread class?

[slasherpunk]

class MyThread1 implements Runnable
{
 Thread t;

 MyThread1()
 {  
    t = new Thread(this);//create a Thread
    t.start();//activate the thread
 } 

 public void run() //override run() of Runnable
 {
   int i;
   for(i =0; i< 1000; i++)
     System.out.print("*");
 }
 
 public static void main(String args[])
 {
   MyThread1 m1 = new MyThread1();
   int i;
   for(i =0; i< 1000; i++)
     System.out.print("=");
 }
}

The class creates a reference of the Thread class(Line 3). How is this possible given that Thread class is not extended by it?

[JamesCherrill]

Because on line 7 you have a new Thread(...), so there you create a Thread instance, just like you can create a String or any other kind of Object.