Athlos announced on Thursday that it would expand to a team-based league in 2026 and Olympic champion Sha’Carri Richardson would join as a founding owner-advisor.
The team format of the women-only league is an expansion of the existing single meet showcase that debuted last September in New York.
According to organizers, the revamped Athlos will kick off after the Diamond League season concludes next year and feature events in multiple cities and stage a championship round.
“I take pride in doing what is right for people,” Richardson told ESPN in statement. “Joining Athlos as an advisor-owner gives me the opportunity to create something that genuinely empowers people both on and off the track.”
Gabby Thomas and Tara Davis-Woodhall will also join the league as advisors and owners.
“Gabby, Sha’Carri, and Tara represent a new generation of athletes who have put this sport on their shoulders and deserve to be compensated for being the standard-bearers,” Athlos creator Alexis Ohanian said in a statement. “We were focused on bringing them into the league as founding owners to ensure we’re building a league that our athletes will love.”
Athlos will return to New York’s Icahn Stadium on October 10 with 42 women competing in six track events and one field event.
Last September, Athlos’ drew praise from the 36 participants who took part in the first meet, which offered the largest prize pool for any women’s-only track and field exhibition. Numerous celebrities were in attendance and the event concluded with a concert performance by Megan Thee Stallion on the infield.
The meet came at the end of a long track and field season that peaked with the Paris Olympics but still drew high profile names like Thomas and Faith Kipyegon.
For the October event, Athlos noted that Thomas and Davis-Woodhall have already agreed to participate along with Jasmine Camacho-Quinn, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, Masai Russell, Marileidy Paulino and Brittany Brown — who won $85,000.
Brown won $60,000 for her victory in the 200m and finished second in the 100m.