US Olympic 200m champion Gabby Thomas was defeated by Brittany Brown as many of the world’s top women’s track and field athletes competed for record prizes at the inaugural Athlos NYC.
Thomas, a three-time gold medalist at Paris 2024, clocked 22.21 seconds but was beaten by Olympic bronze medalist Brown, who crossed the line in 22.18.
Kenyan 1500m world record holder Faith Kipyegon and Olympic 400m champion Marileidy Paulino were among the winners who received $60,000 (£44,900) on the women-only track.
Alexis Ohanian – co-founder of Reddit and husband of 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams – launched the event, with a record prize pool of $500,000 (£374,000) for a women’s track competition.
“I feel like this sport is really changing and growing – I’m excited to be a part of it,” Brown said.
By comparison, the Diamond League offers a first prize of $15,000 (£11,200) over the 15 series of meetings, rising to $30,000 (£22,400) for the final.
Thirty-six athletes competed in the 100 meters, 200 meters, 400 meters, 100 meters hurdles, 800 meters and 1500 meters at Icahn Stadium, with the winners also receiving a crown from New York jewelers Tiffany & Co.
“I asked these women and I was like, ‘Hey, what’s your grand prize at the end of a season if you win?’ And they said $30,000,” Ohanian told Reuters.
“And I said, ‘Great, I’m going to double it for a single race’.”
Great Britain’s Daryll Neita (11.29 seconds) was fourth in the 100 meters, won by Marie Josee Ta Lou-Smith of Ivory Coast in 10.98.
Katie Snowden ran four minutes and 07.57 seconds to finish sixth in the 1500 metres, while Olympic and world champion Kipyegon won in 4:04.79 ahead of Ethiopia’s Diribe Welteji.
Paulinho won the 400m title in 49.59 seconds, while Puerto Rico’s Jasmine Camacho-Quinn took victory in the 100m hurdles in 12.36 seconds.
Olympic 800m silver medalist Tsige Duguma defeated Kenyan world champion Mary Moraa in a two-lap race in 1:57.43.
The meeting in Athlos continues wider investment in the sport and its athletes, with World Athletics paying Olympic champions for the first time at this year’s Paris Games.
In June, American legend Michael Johnson announced the launch of a lucrative new athletics competition starting in April 2025, called Grand Slam Track, with a total of $12.6 million in prize money.
And last week, the Diamond League said it would raise prize money for the 2025 season.
“This is bigger than me and it’s bigger than this race,” said Thomas, who added gold in the 4×100 meters and 4×400 meter relay to her 200 meters victory in Paris.
“It’s about what we do for women’s sport and what this event in particular means for women’s sport and for athletics.”
Ohanian founded Athlos NYC following his investment in Los Angeles-based NWSL side Angel City FC last year, when the club became the most expensive women’s sports team in the world.
“You just look at the number of followers, you look at the engagement. Female athletes — and in this example with track and field — are just much more compelling,” Ohanian said.
“I have a ‘Spidey feeling’ for where there are hyper-engaged communities of fans and women’s sports has them in droves.”
