Athlos track meet to expand to London in 2026 with two-day format

The all-female track meet Athlos will head to London for the first time in 2026 and expand to a two-day event. Founder Alexis Ohanian said he hopes the competition can become the Formula 1 of track and field.

Athlos will also return to New York for a third straight year. The events will offer a $2.1 million prize pot and give athletes equity in the league so they can benefit if it succeeds.

American stars Sha'Carri Richardson, Gabby Thomas, Tara Woodhall-Davis and Masai Russell, along with Dominican sprinter Marileidy Paulino, have been confirmed for the meets. The London event will take place at StoneX Stadium in Barnet on September 18, home of rugby union side Saracens. The New York meet will follow two weeks later at Icahn Stadium.

Ohanian, Reddit co-founder and husband of tennis champion Serena Williams, said he has long been drawn to the Formula 1 comparison. He told BBC Sport that he wants the fastest athletes to tour major cities the way the fastest cars do.

"I envision Athlos to be a version of that and, as we grow this league, I'd love to add more cities and make Athlos truly global," Ohanian said. "Whatever we do, we're going to do it with our athletes as partners. I don't see any reason why Athlos can't be a mainstay of the sporting calendar."

Ohanian said he wants to close the gap between the economics of women's track and field and the level of talent in the sport. Athlos is owned by his venture capital firm Seven Seven Six, which has $900 million in assets, but athletes will receive equity stakes.

"The cash compensates their participation and success, and the equity recognises what we're building together," Ohanian said. "If we get this right, it should properly place these amazing athletes on the same level as they are every four years during the Olympics."

Ohanian reached out to athletes such as Olympic 200m champion Gabby Thomas on social media before the first Athlos event in 2024. Thomas, a Harvard graduate, said the equity model sends a clear signal.

"We get a share in what we're helping to build and that's really rare in this sport," Thomas told BBC Sport. "How can we fail as a league when we have the athletes as partners and helping to build it? We know the sport better than anyone."

Thomas said she wants young girls watching the sport to see women treated with respect and paid fairly. "The narrative growing up was that you can't run professional track and field, there's nothing in it," she said. "I like that we're rewriting that."