Sha’Carri Richardson isn’t heading to London to chase another medal. This time, she’s there to help build something. With ATHLOS LDN26 just days away, Richardson has already settled into the British capital alongside founder Alexis Ohanian. And as London prepares to give the women-only track event its international debut, the sprint star appears more than ready for whatever comes with it.

In a recently shared Instagram Story, Ohanian was seen playfully using his hand as an umbrella over Richardson as they walked through the streets of London. Richardson reposted the moment with a simple caption: “@athlos London we’re ready for the weather.”

And the playful exchange comes at a significant moment for ATHLOS. The event will take place at StoneX Stadium on September 18, marking the league’s first international meeting after two seasons in New York.

Current forecasts put Friday’s temperature around 20–21°C, with sunny intervals giving way to more cloud later in the day and only a limited chance of rain.

Richardson is not simply a participant in the project. Alongside Gabby Thomas and Tara Davis-Woodhall, she is an ATHLOS owner-advisor, giving her a stake in shaping the future of the league.

And judging by her recent comments, Richardson is taking that role seriously.

Just days before arriving in London, Richardson had already made her excitement for the event clear. She posted, “London @athlos !!! So excited for our first international meet !!”

Her enthusiasm fits with the mindset she has repeatedly spoken about when discussing what keeps her moving forward.

In an ATHLOS teaser, Richardson was asked what continues to push her to chase more. Her answer was simple, but it revealed plenty about the mentality behind the sprinter.

“My motivation to keep chasing is knowing that there is more. My motivation to keep going is because there’s so much more. There’s more to be better at. There’s more to grow from. There’s more to learn from. Motivation for me to keep chasing is the fact that there’s more to come, more to have, more to be.”

That philosophy is particularly relevant to ATHLOS because Richardson is involved in the project from a different position now. She isn’t merely waiting for the next starting gun. She has a voice in what comes next for women’s track and field.

And that was part of what drew her to Ohanian’s vision in the first place.
Richardson has previously described ATHLOS as a place built around investing in women athletes and creating opportunities that extend beyond the traditional track meet. “Athlos is a safe haven when it comes to women’s sports,” she said. “Athlos is at the foundation of the belief that we all feel inside of us, but actually created the space to display it.”

That connection with Ohanian has grown considerably over the past couple of years.

From Alexis Ohanian’s early praise to Sha’Carri Richardson becoming an owner-advisor

There was a time when Richardson wasn’t part of ATHLOS at all.
Back in October 2024, Ohanian spoke about Richardson in glowing terms, saying she embodied the qualities he believed athletes represented even though she had not participated in his event at that point.

The relationship soon changed.

By 2025, Richardson had officially become one of ATHLOS’ headline athletes and owner-advisors. She later acknowledged Ohanian’s investment in women’s sports, sharing a picture of him with his daughter and writing, “@alexisohanian Thank You for believing in Women Sports.”

Then, in 2026, their relationship moved further into the business side of athletics.
Richardson appeared alongside Ohanian at an iConnections event to discuss ATHLOS and its ambitions. Afterward, she wrote, “Alexis, I had an amazing time speaking about the importance of what we’re doing at Athlos!”

Ohanian responded: “Loved sharing the stage today with the one and only @itsshacarri today at iConnections to talk about the ambitions of our @athlos league.”

For Richardson, that involvement is about more than simply attaching her name to another sports venture.

“I feel like it’s the true investment behind Athlos,” she said previously. “It comes down to everybody that’s involved. They just want the best. They want to support women’s sports. They just want us to be the best that we can be.”

That is the bigger picture behind the umbrella joke in London.

Ohanian has never been shy about the size of his ambition. He has described his long-term vision for ATHLOS as the “Formula 1 of track and field” – a global series that takes elite women’s athletics into major cities and builds an experience around the athletes rather than treating the competition as an afterthought.

The 2026 London event features seven disciplines: the 100m hurdles, 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, mile, and long jump. ATHLOS also offers significant prize money, with $65,000 going to each event winner, while eligible participating athletes receive equity in the league.

The road to London, however, has not been completely straightforward.

ATHLOS originally planned a two-city 2026 season, with London on September 18 followed by New York on October 2. But Ohanian later cancelled the New York meeting after receiving feedback from athletes about the demands of extending an already long season.

That leaves London as the focus.

And Richardson is right at the center of it – not as another athlete preparing for a race, but as one of the women helping determine what ATHLOS becomes.