Women’s track and field competition in New York with Olympic champions and lucrative prize money

Thursday night’s track and field meet in New York City will be a unique experience, with lucrative cash prizes, big-name entertainers, silver crowns for the winners instead of gold medals, and an all-female field of competitors.

Another victory for women’s sports.

Recently crowned Olympic 200m champion Gabby Thomas and her team are taking track racing to the next level by competing in the first Athlos track meet at 7:30pm, featuring some of the fastest women in the world.

To even get to the starting line, an assist goes to Alex Morgan and the rest of her 2019 World Cup-winning US soccer team. And another assist goes to basketball stars Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese.

Because Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of Reddit and husband of Serena Williams, was told that no one watches women’s sports.

He disagreed. It led to the launch of Athlos, which will award more than $500,000 in prize money and distribute 10 percent of all proceeds to the athletes. It will also feature a performance by Grammy Award-winning singer Megan Thee Stallion.

“We’re outsiders in athletics, so we’re coming at it with a pretty modest approach. Our number one priority is to do it right for these athletes,” Ohanian said of an event that will be held at Icahn Stadium and funded by Seven Seven Six, the venture capital firm he founded.

“I don’t want to downplay it, but a big reason women’s sports are held back is simply a lack of investment. But now it’s become too valuable to ignore.

“Yes, everyone is looking at women’s sports and now the only question is which ones.”

‘It’s all about us’

For hurdler Alaysha Johnson, an all-women’s race feels like the perfect ending to a long season of Diamond League races, U.S. Olympic qualifiers and the Paris Olympics.

“It just makes us feel like we’re ahead of the curve,” Johnson said. “Everything revolves around us.”

Athlos, a Greek word meaning “athlete,” will feature the 100, 100, 200, 400, 800 and 1,500 hurdles. It will be broadcast on the X platform, YouTube and ESPN Plus, along with a replay on ESPN2 over the weekend.

Among the big names competing are reigning Olympic champions Thomas (200), Masai Russell (hurdles), Marileidy Paulino (400) and Faith Kipyegon (1,500).

“I was in the elevator with (other athletes) and it was just like, ‘Wow, look at us. We’re really making an impact,'” said Johnson, who reached the Olympic final in the 100-meter hurdles. “People believe in us, put their money and dollars behind us. It shows us that we have value in this sport.”

More money on track

Nowadays a lot of money is pumped into athletics:

• Legendary sprinter Michael Johnson entered the market with Grand Slam Track, which will host four races a year starting in 2025, with $100,000 prizes for the top finishers.
• World Athletics has announced that the first Ultimate Championships will be held in Budapest in 2026 and will feature the very best in the sport.
• The Diamond League, the annual track and field competition, plans to split prize money equally between men and women next season. Total prize money per discipline will then be between $30,000 and $50,000, and between $60,000 and $100,000 for the finals.

Ohanian is counting on there being room for Athlos, too. He believes this meeting can only be a starting point, with $60,000 going to the winner, along with a crown designed by Tiffany & Co.

Flashback to 2019: Ohanian caused a social media storm when he spoke out about how undervalued women’s sports were following the U.S. Women’s World Cup win. Morgan and others responded with a simple message: Don’t just talk about it, do it.

That led Ohanian to invest in Angel City FC, a team that plays in the National Women’s Soccer League.

“The reason I got so excited about starting a (soccer) team was because every four years I’d see how popular these women were and then they’d disappear,” Ohanian said. “It didn’t make sense. I thought, ‘Here’s an opportunity to make sure these stars are visible year-round.'”

Another big factor: Clark and Reese’s popularity. Last April, Clark and her Iowa team defeated Reese and LSU in the Elite Eight of the NCAA women’s tournament, averaging 12.3 million viewers on ESPN, according to Nielsen. At the time, it was one of the most-watched games in a sport other than NFL football that year.

“Female athletes, especially the younger generation, just attract a lot more attention,” Ohanian said. “It’s not consistent with the way that has historically been invested in it.”

Gauging interest in rail

About a year ago, more and more highlights from the track started appearing on Ohanian’s social media feeds. An idea: to spotlight female competitors. He chatted with about a dozen athletes and asked out-of-the-box questions.

“I wanted to learn more about the sport,” he explains.

One of the first to raise her hand to participate was Thomas, the Harvard-trained sprinter who won three gold medals in Paris.

“That told me everything I needed to know,” he said of Thomas’ immediate interest. “One of my favorite things about building something is realizing how many times people have said to me, ‘Because that’s the way it’s always been done.’

“When you hear that as an entrepreneur, it really gets you excited. If you do things because that’s how it’s always been done, that’s a terrible reason to do something.

“You want to do something because it’s actually the best way to solve the problem you’re trying to solve. We looked at Athlos through that lens.”