Building off the success of its inaugural event in 2024, Athlos will debut a team-based track and field league in 2026, with Olympic gold medalists Sha’Carri Richardson, Gabby Thomas and Tara Davis-Woodhall on board as founding adviser-owners.
Athlos, which was created by Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian, drew 3 million viewers for its women’s track event last September in New York. Thomas and 1,500m women’s world-record holder Faith Kipyegon were among the 35 female athletes participating for the largest prize purse for a women-only track and field event.
“I take pride in doing what is right for people,” Richardson told ESPN. “Joining ATHLOS as an advisor-owner gives me the opportunity to create something that genuinely empowers people both on and off the track.”
Slated to debut following the World Athletics season, the league — designed for and by athletes — will feature teams competing in multiple meets in major cities. A championship event will determine the overall winner at the end of the season.
“Gabby, Sha’Carri, and Tara represent a new generation of athletes who have put this sport on their shoulders and deserve to be compensated for being the standard-bearers,” Ohanian said in a press release. “We were focused on bringing them into the league as founding owners to ensure we’re building a League that our athletes will love.”
Before the league debuts, Athlos will hold another event at Icahn Stadium on Randalls Island on Oct. 10, with Thomas and Davis-Woodhall among the athletes committed to compete, with six track events and one field event on the docket.
Fellow Olympians Masai Russell, Marileidy Paulino, Jasmine Camacho-Quinn, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden and Brittany Brown are also slated to participate. Last year, Brown finished first in the 200 meters and second in the 100 meters and claimed the largest prize total.
–Field Level Media
