Athlos witnessed a grand success after a full house turnout and praises from the audience, athletes, and every member involved in the event. The prizes became a secondary subject of discussion, for all one could talk about was how Alexis Ohanian managed to pull off a feat so significant. He recently revealed his idea behind the event, including the secret of making things work off-season.
In a candid chat with Justin Gatlin and Rodney Green, the co-founder of Reddit opened up on his observations surrounding track and field as a sport and its lack of screen time. Being tennis GOAT Serena Williams’ husband had given him a good idea of how the track season was short compared to sports like tennis. Therefore, his goal was to put the meeting in the limelight not just for the viewers but also for the athletes.
Gatlin brought up the subject and asked the entrepreneur about his vision surrounding athletes participating at an awkward time between the Olympics and the World Championships. Although it raised a question about the athlete’s persona versus performance, Ohanian attributed his decisions to the track season’s time period.
He confessed that while some of the ladies were skeptical about performing at a time when their off-season inched closer, the prospects of Athlos turned out to be promising enough to get them onboard.
“All of a sudden, the ladies are going, ‘well you know what? I am in peak fitness right now’…it means extending the season, but the ‘why’ is pretty darn compelling!”
Alexis Ohanian hated how athletes’ relevancy tended to fade out with the end of the Olympics, and he wanted to change that narrative. Female athletes, in particular, held a lot of potential not only on the track but also with their unique personalities.
Ultimately, the popularity of the Olympics and budget allocation in terms of sponsors, investments, and partners played well with the hype. Athlos’ success wasn’t simply a result of their grand prizes and Tiffany & Co. crowns, but also due to their marketing and timing. And so much so that they managed to go head-to-head with Thursday Night Football between the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys and still saw a houseful crowd.
The athletes ultimately had a great time, the audience fueled up, and the atmosphere was electrifying. All of these factors guaranteed a follow-up season next year, and Ohanian’s dream to make Athlos the next meet that everyone looks forward to also seems to be coming true.
