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 medallists 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.