Never mind that it was nearly mid-October and the air was cold, Davis-Woodhall equaled her 2025 best on her last jump. (JOSH SAWYER)
RANDALLS ISLAND, NEW YORK, October 10 — Coming at the end of a long, intense season, the timing of the second edition of the Athlos NYC meet may not have been ideal, but the athletes came to Icahn Stadium ready to put on a show following last yearâ€s splashy debut. Brittany Brown was the nightâ€s big winner with a $120,000 payday for sweeping the 100 and 200, while the always-flamboyant Tara Davis-Woodhall made sure the addition of a field event to the program gave the crowd of roughly 5000 a spectacular moment in the long jump. Though conditions were cool and breezy, with temperatures right around 60 degrees F (16 C) at the start and dropping steadily through the evening, the performances were at a high level.
The all-womenâ€s track meet was created and bankrolled by venture capitalist (and Reddit co-founder) Alexis Ohanian, who became mesmerized by the sport last year and saw the potential to reach a wider audience — not to mention attract revenue and sponsorship dollars — beyond the quadrennial Olympic buzz. “If you go to track meets, as Iâ€ve had the experience as an outsider coming into the sport, when you see just how much fun these are, you realize as an entertainment product you can have sports excellence,†he said the day before the meet.
While putting on a glitzy event was paramount (including a post-meet concert by Grammy-winning singer Ciara) Ohanian underscored that the competitors are the main selling point. “Donâ€t get it twisted. Yes, we have A-listers in the crowd, yes, weâ€re going to have superstars spinning/DJing and Ciara performing — it will be a spectacle. But itâ€s also real, true sport,†he said. “Weâ€re elevating things that have already been in the culture of track & field. I didnâ€t invent anything here. And weâ€re listening to the athletes. The way this was built was with a bunch of phone calls that thankfully these amazing women took, even before we had done anything.â€
Last yearâ€s success helped attract new sponsors, including Cash App. The financial services platform provided immediate prize-money payment to athletes, addressing an issue that has long plagued the sport and gained increased attention this year following the implosion of Michael Johnsonâ€s Grand Slam Track series. Cash App also offered a $250,000 bonus for any World Records set at Athlos, though that seemed highly unlikely to become a reality given the timing and weather conditions.
As it is, the prize money was once again quite lavish, starting at $60,000 for 1st place, all the way down to $2500 for 6th. Winners were presented a silver Tiffany crown by tennis superstar Serena Williams (who happens to be Ohanianâ€s wife). This yearâ€s meet also added a live telecast on the cable channel Ion (which has ventured into womenâ€s sports in recent years with WNBA and NWSL coverage) to go along with various streaming options.
One of the biggest changes was the introduction of a field event, the long jump, after last yearâ€s all-track program. Four rounds of preliminary jumps were held in a pop-up venue in Times Square the evening before the main portion of the meet, with a mass of fans showing up. Davis-Woodhall, the Olympic and world champion, engaged with Ohanian directly over the winter to brainstorm the eventâ€s inclusion. “He asked me, ‘What do you want as an athlete?†and I was like I want to see long jump be sexy. I want to see that long jump be as sexy as the 100-meter dash,†she said. “He asked me whatâ€s my dream and I told him my dream was street meets. I told him it would be cool to jump in Times Square.â€
Davis-Woodhall came through the next night, equaling her own world lead of 23-4 ¾ (7.13) in a final-round head-to-head matchup with Jasmine Moore during the main program at Icahn. She admitted that she didnâ€t know if she had a big jump in her this late in the year, but she fed off the energy she encouraged from the crowd, imploring them to stand for her last jump. “Your bodyâ€s not feeling 100 percent, itâ€s already October and youâ€re trying to control the cold, control the wind, control all of it,†said Davis-Woodhall, who remains unbeaten since taking the silver at the â€23 Worlds in Budapest. “I am so happy that I got to end the season by tying my world lead and it just solidified all my hard work that I put in this season.â€
The rest of the competition showed that many of the athletes still had reserves to tap into this late in the year, especially Brown. The â€24 Olympic bronze medalist in the 200 first overtook Jacious Sears in the final strides to win the 100 in 10.99. She then set a PR in the 200 (21.89, =No. 13 on the U.S. all-time list) ahead of Anavia Battle (22.21).
“I thrive off of this, so maybe itâ€s just the environment that really brings it out in me,†said Brown, who was also last yearâ€s top Athlos earner, taking the 200 after a runner-up showing in the 100. She had laparoscopic surgery to treat endometriosis in December, which led to a late start on training this season. She finished 4th at USATF Outdoors, won the Diamond League final, then placed 6th at Worlds in Tokyo. “It was a trying year, honestly, but to come out here to be crowned — twice — perfect timing I guess,†Brown said. “Sometimes things just take time.â€
The other four track events were all won by â€24 Olympic gold medalists. In the 100H, Masai Russell moved into the lead with three hurdles to go and clocked a wind-aided 12.52 ahead of Grace Stark (12.60). Keely Hodgkinson went wire-to-wire in the 800, crossing the line in 1:56.53 after pulling away from Georgia Hunter Bell (1:58.33) and Shafiqua Maloney (1:58.57) over the final 150. Faith Kipyegon passed the fast-starting Gudaf Tsegay on the third lap of the mile and won easily, 4:17.78 to 4:19.75. Marileidy Paulino took the 400 in 50.06, using a late charge to separate from Salwa Eid Naser (50.94).
Melissa Jefferson-Wooden was originally slated to compete, but coming off a lengthy season that culminated with a trio of World Championships gold medals in September, she scratched. Still, she was on hand at the stadium to sign autographs, as was her predecessor as 100 world champ. Shaâ€Carri Richardson will join Athlos in 2026 as part of a new league/team format contested in multiple cities. Ohanian said the team idea was inspired by the brand rivalries at the heart of the Formula 1 race car series, and he promised more details before the end of the year.
ATHLOS NYC WOMEN
100(1.4): 1. Brittany Brown (US) 10.99; 2. Jacious Sears (US) 11.01; 3. Kayla White (US) 11.22; 4. Marie Josée Ta Lou-Smith (CI) 11.23; 5. Jonielle Smith (Jam) 11.24; 6. Zoe Hobbs (NZ) 11.30.
200(1.9): 1. Brown 21.89 PR; 2. Anavia Battle (US) 22.21; 3. Marie-Josée Ta Lou-Smith (CI) 22.65; 4. McKenzie Long (US) 22.74; 5. Jessika Gbai (CI) 22.92; 6. Amy Hunt (GB) 22.94.
400: 1. Marileidy Paulino (DR) 50.07; 2. Salwa Eid Naser (Bhr) 50.94; 3. Henriette Jæger (Nor) 51.24; 4. Alexis Holmes (US) 51.74; 5. Lynna Irby-Jackson (US) 51.93; 6. Amber Anning (GB) 52.86.
800: 1. Keely Hodgkinson (GB) 1:56.53; 2. Georgia Hunter Bell (GB) 1:58.33; 3. Shafiqua Maloney (StV) 1:58.57; 4. Natoya Goule-Toppin (Jam) 1:59.01; 5. Halimah Nakaayi (Uga) 2:01.32; 6. Emily Richards (US) 2:07.12.
Mile: 1. Faith Kipyegon (Ken) 4:17.78; 2. Gudaf Tsegay (Eth) 4:19.75; 3. Nikki Hiltz (US) 4:32.51; 4. Freweyni Hailu (Eth) 4:33.20; 5. Susan Ejore-Sanders (Ken) 4:33.31.
100H(2.3): 1. Masai Russell (US) 12.52w; 2. Grace Stark (US) 12.60w; 3. Alaysha Johnson (US) 12.66w; 4. Devynne Charlton (Bah) 12.71w; 5. Tonea Marshall (US) 12.88w; 6. Megan Tapper (Jam) 12.92w.
LJ(10/10): 1. Tara Davis-Woodhall (US) 23-4¾ (7.13) (=WL =AL) (21-10, 22-4½, 23-4¾) (6.65, 6.82, 7.13);
2. Jasmine Moore (US) 21-9½ (6.64) (21-4¼, 21-9½, 20-10½) (6.51, 6.64, 6.36); 3. Jazmin Sawyers (GB) 20-5 (6.22) (20-5, 19-¾) (6.22, 5.81); 4. Quanesha Burks (US) 20-2¼ (6.15) (19-11¾, 20-2¼) (6.09, 6.15).
Qual(Times Square, 10/09): Davis-Woodhall 22-4¼ (6.81); Burks 20-11¼ (6.38); Moore 20-9¼ (6.33); Claire Bryant (US) 20-2½ (6.16); Sawyers 20-1½ (6.13); Monae†Nichols (US) 20-1 (6.12).
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