RANDALLS ISLAND, NEW YORK, September 26 —Women’s sports have been in the spotlight over the past year, with attention and respect surging for basketball, soccer, volleyball and gymnastics. Now track & field’s female stars got their moment to shine in the glitzy, lucrative Athlos NYC meet on a balmy early-fall night in the Big Apple. A quartet of Olympic champions from Paris headlined the affair, with Marileidy Paulino and Faith Kipyegon completing undefeated ’24 campaigns in their signature events.
The season-ending showcase at Icahn Stadium featured just 6 races with 6 athletes in each (35 total women, with Brittany Brown doubling in the 100 and 200). There were no field events and no men’s events. The meet was created by venture capitalist Alexis Ohanian, the multimillionaire cofounder of Reddit, and a supporter of women’s sports through his investment in the NWSL pro soccer team Angel City FC (not to mention his marriage to tennis superstar Serena Williams).
The deep prize purse ($663,000) offered $60,000 for 1st place, followed by $25,000 for the runner-up, down to $2500 for 6th. Winners also received a custom-made crown from Tiffany & Co., — and if they had also won gold in Paris, Ohanian promised to throw in an additional $60K. In addition, organizers say that 10% of revenues from ticketing, sponsorships and broadcast will go to the athletes.
Compare that to the $30,000 that winners at the Diamond League Final received this year. That’s rising to $60,000 to $100,000 next year, no doubt in response to events like Athlos and Michael Johnson’s upcoming Grand Slam Track.
“It’s amazing to see the competition and how it’s driving the sport forward,” Olympic 200 champ Gabby Thomas said. “You have this meet and other initiatives and to see the Diamond League reacting to that is incredible. We’ve been wanting that for so long now and now we have the support to really make it happen.”
The athletes all raved about the VIP treatment they received, including high-end gift bags and a professional make-up session and glam photo shoot the day before the meet. “They made us feel special,” said Marie Josée Ta Lou-Smith, who won the 100. “It’s really different, it’s not comparable to other meets.”
More substantially, they say their input into every aspect of the meet was heard and incorporated, and they felt this was an opportunity to create new interest from the public.
“We built this by talking to the athletes,” said Ohanian, who promised that the event will return next year. “It’s not what I want. It’s what the athletes want.”
Thomas, who was among the first athletes to sign on for the meet, knew it was important to be a part of the event, even if it came so late in an intense Olympic season. “This is bigger than myself and it’s bigger than this race,” said the winner of 3 golds in Paris. “It’s about what we’re doing for women’s sports and what this event, in particular, means for women’s sport and for track & field.”
Approximately 4000 fans showed up and the reception was enthusiastic, despite the long gaps between events. A DJ kept the mood up, and a post-meet concert on the infield stage from Grammy-winning rapper Megan Thee Stallion added to the entertainment factor. The athletes each chose a song to be played as they came out onto the track, and 100 hurdles winner Jasmine Camacho-Quinn said the crowd was so loud she couldn’t hear her music.
Among the VIPs on hand were rapper Flavor Flav (who has become a major supporter of women’s sports, particularly the U.S. water polo team, this year); Grey’s Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes; actress Nathalie Emmanuel of the Fast & Furious franchise; Sean Evans, host of the popular YouTube series Hot Ones; and of course track and field royalty, including Gail Devers, Fred Kerley and Sanya Richards-Ross, who was working the meet broadcast.
And helping the event live up to the hype, the competition itself was top notch despite the meet being held well past the traditional end to the season. Camacho-Quinn won the 100H in 12.36 ahead of Alaysha Johnson (12.43) and Paris winner Masai Russell (12.44). Marie Josée Ta Lou-Smith took the 100 in 10.98, and Paulino had a dominant closing surge to clock 49.59 in the 400 ahead of Alexis Holmes (49.99).
Olympic silver medalist Tsige Duguma won the 800 in 1:57.43, pulling away from world champion Mary Moraa (1:58.05) down the homestretch, and Kipyegon used a 58.45 last lap to take the 1500 (4:04.79) over Diribe Welteji (4:05.58).
The 3-time Olympic gold medalist said she felt fresh this late in the year due to the late start she made to her season. “I was in it for the money,” Kipyegon joked, clearly reveling in the shiny crown atop her head. “To have $60,000 for a women’s only meet is huge.… I hope to see more of these kinds of events going forward.”
The 200 was the night’s concluding event and Thomas, as the face of the meet, was hoping to cap her spectacular season. Alas, the busy media tour that followed her triple gold performance in Paris left her short on training. Brown, the bronze medalist in Paris, closed well to overhaul Thomas in the final 20 meters for an upset win, 22.18 to 22.21.
Brown had earlier been 2nd in the 100, so her combined payday hit $85,000. “I ain’t never been treated like this,” she said. “They treated us like real professional athletes. Sometimes we go to meets, and it doesn’t feel very athlete-centered. This was athlete-centered.”
ATHLOS NYC WOMEN
100(0.1): 1. Marie Josée Ta Lou-Smith (CI) 10.98; 2. Brittany Brown (US) 11.05; 3. Candace Hill (US) 11.14; 4. Daryll Neita (GB) 11.29; 5. Zoe Hobbs (NZ) 11.38; 6. Celera Barnes (US) 11.41.
200(0.7): 1. Brittany Brown (US) 22.18; 2. Gabby Thomas (US) 22.21; 3. Anavia Battle (US) 22.34; 4. Jenna Prandini (US) 22.62; 5. Tamara Clark (US) 22.83; 6. Torrie Lewis (Aus) 23.53.
400: 1. Marileidy Paulino (DR) 49.59; 2. Alexis Holmes (US) 49.99; 3. Salwa Eid Naser (Bhr) 50.40; 4. Shamier Little (US) 51.28; 5. Lieke Klaver (Neth) 51.82; 6. Lynna Irby-Jackson (US) 51.83.
800: 1. Tsige Duguma (Eth) 1:57.43; 2. Mary Moraa (Ken) 1:58.05; 3. Natoya Goule-Toppin (Jam) 1:58.63; 4. Addy Wiley (US) 1:58.93; 5. Halimah Nakaayi (Uga) 1:59.62; 6. Nia Akins (US) 2:01.32.
1500: 1. Faith Kipyegon (Ken) 4:04.79; 2. Diribe Welteji (Eth) 4:05.58; 3. Susan Ejore (Ken) 4:06.25; 4. Gudaf Tsegay (Eth) 4:06.81; 5. Cory McGee (US) 4:07.09; 6. Katie Snowden (GB) 4:07.57.
100H(0.6): 1. Jasmine Camacho-Quinn (PR) 12.36; 2. Alaysha Johnson (US) 12.43; 3. Masai Russell (US) 12.44; 4. Tonea Marshall (US) 12.51; 5. Danielle Williams (Jam) 12.56; 6. Charisma Taylor (Bah) 13.58.