Alexis Ohanian’s new track venture has reeled in arguably the biggest fish in American running.
Athlos announced Thursday that a group headlined by Olympic gold medal-winning sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson will receive equity and be advisor-owners of a new team-based track and field league that is launching next year.
It had previously been a one-off track meet in New York City, which is returning for a second edition in 2025.
The women’s track and field league—which is backed by Ohanian’s Seven Seven Six venture firm and includes the long jump as an event—also features two other Paris Olympic gold medal-winners as founding “advisor-owners” in Gabby Thomas and Tara Davis-Woodhall. That trio represents “ 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 statement Thursday.
Details about what it means to be an advisor-owner were not disclosed and a representative for Athlos and Ohanian declined to comment further than what was included in the press release.
A source familiar with the matter tells Front Office Sports that Richardson, Thomas and Davis-Woodhall will receive “substantial” equity ownership in Athlos League as part of their role but could not share additional specifics.
Thomas and Davis-Woodhall will both race in 2025, including on October 10 at Icahn Stadium on Randalls Island, where there will be 42 athletes across seven total events. Richardson is not confirmed to be racing in the Athlos league at this point, the source says.
No specifics about the teams were disclosed. The source tells FOS that college teams with team-based track and field formats, as well as Formula One, serve as inspiration.
In last year’s event, also on Randalls Island, there were 35 athletes and total prize payouts of about $663,000. Sprinter Brittany Brown took home the most money, winning $85,000 in two races. The exact purse amount for this year’s event was not disclosed, but the source tells FOS that it will likely be a little higher than last year, and that Athlos is generally “pushing to chase record-breaking prize money.”
The involvement of Richardson, one of the most famous track and field stars in the world, is notable. There is a budding rivalry between Athlos and Grand Slam Track, another big-money running start-up that launched this year. Grand Slam, launched by Michael Johnson with $30 million in funding from Winners Alliance, has been offering $100,000 for the event group winners of its two-day Slams.
Grand Slam has several big names, including Athlos stars like Thomas and Masai Russell. But none match Richardson’s pure celebrity.
Johnson appeared on Front Office Sports Today on Thursday and was asked about recruiting names like Richardson. “Come when you’re ready,” he said. He noted he talked to “all of these athletes” before starting the venture, and the themes they raised about what they want included being able to compete against their rivals and television exposure, which Grand Slam offers. His venture has the “best athletes,” biggest prize money and “best television exposure,” he said.
“We could talk about the athletes who didn’t join, but it’s the ones who did join that are making a difference,” he said.
Last year, Ohanian went after Grand Slam, tagging Johnson and billionaire investor Bill Ackman in a series of social media posts. (Ackman is the chairman of the board of Winners Alliance, the source of Grand Slam’s funding.) Ohanian claimed that Grand Slam was requiring athletes to sign agreements restricting what other races they can compete in. “It’s disappointing you’re requiring these women to get permission from you & Bill in order to compete in other leagues. It’s not very athlete-friendly,” Ohanian wrote.
A Grand Slam spokesperson told FOS last year that the league’s athletes are allowed to compete in other competitions, like the Diamond League and Athlos, and do not need permission to do so.
A representative for Ohanian and Athlos declined to comment on the relationship with Grand Slam, and a representative for Grand Slam did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A source familiar with the situation tells FOS that while there has been no action taken to thaw the ice between Ohanian and Grand Slam, there also have not been further dust-ups.
