Tech mogul Alexis Ohanian, the co-founder of Reddit and organizer of the Athlos event, recently found himself in the hot seat when asked about his 100-meter personal best. The hilarious exchange occurred during an interview with Ready Set Go podcast hosts Justin Gatlin and Rodney Green.
As the discussion moved toward athletic ability, Green couldn’t help but tease Ohanian about how fast he could run. “What is your personal best in the 100-meter dash?” he inquired. To which Ohanian’s response was nothing short of hilarious.
“Are you kidding? Do I look? Did you see me walking in here? Big fella doesn’t sprint.”
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The entrepreneur explained that his running experience was limited to high school football practice, where laps were a punishment rather than a timed event.
“I got a better chance in the 100 than the 1500 cuz I’d be trotting… you don’t understand; the only time I ran was high school football as a punishment, right, and you’re just running laps… no one’s got to stopwatch.“
The podcast hosts, amused by Ohanian’s candid admission, pressed further. They suggested that he participate in a 100-meter dash at his own event—Athlos.
“Team wouldn’t let me. Here’s the thing: no one wins in that scenario. There’s no scenario where I come out good in that,” he laughed, painting a vivid picture of a “41-year-old out-of-shape dad sprinting 100 meters.”
Despite the hosts’ encouragement that such a display would earn him the title of “the people’s champ,” Ohanian stood firm on his decision to keep his sprinting abilities (or lack thereof) under wraps! He cited concern for his legacy, not wanting to leave behind embarrassing footage for his daughters to stumble upon in the future.
It seems like the tech entrepreneur has no plans to trade in his business suit for running spikes anytime soon, much to the amusement of podcast listeners everywhere.
As for Athlos, Ohanian emphasized that he gave female athletes, especially those who don’t compete indoors, a chance to win one of the biggest financial awards in track and field history just before the off-season began.
He also recognized the track community as one of the most important contributors to Athlos’ success since they maintained enthusiasm for the event throughout the campaign.
