BBC to broadcast Alexis Ohanian co-founded all-female athletics series Athlos
The BBC will broadcast the Alexis Ohanian co-founded all-female athletics meet Athlos when it heads to London next month.
The event, one of a number on a series funded by the Reddit co-founder, will land at Prem Rugby team Saracens’ Stone X Stadium in September with the likes of Keely Hodgkinson, Sha’Carri Richardson, Gabby Thomas and Georgia Hunter Bell set to feature.
Athlos is funded by Serena Williams’ husband Ohanian’s Seven Seven Six early-stage venture capital firm, which has nearly $1b in assets under management. It holds additional from both Richardson and Thomas, as well as Tara Davis-Woodhall.
The organisation’s acting president Kayla Green said: “The BBC is where the UK falls in love with athletics, and there’s no better partner to introduce Athlos to British fans.”
The BBC’s coverage will come a month after it broadcasts the European Athletics Championships, which are taking place in the UK – in Birmingham – for the first time from next week.
Athlos on the rise?
Athlos began in New York as an all-female athletics meet, and outlasted Michael Johnson’s Grand Slam Track. Its London expansion will mark the first time the organisation has left the American East Coast with the Stone X hosting the tournament ahead of the new Prem Rugby season.
Added Green: As we bring Athlos to London for the first time, streaming on BBC means every fan in the country can watch the world’s fastest women make history.
“This is exactly what our global expansion is about: the best of women’s track and field, on the biggest platforms in the world.”
Ohanian has a number of female-based sports investments, headed up by Athlos.
Elsewhere the Reddit co-founder holds a 10 per cent stake in Women’s Super League club Chelsea and was a major investor in US team Angel City before Disney chief Bob Iger and others acquired a controlling stake. He has said Chelsea can become the first women’s football club to be valued at $1bn.
The 43-year old also has a TGL golf team and a League One Volleyball side.