Just after winning Olympic gold in Paris with a long jump of 7.10 meters, Tara Davis-Woodhall made a move that is rarely seen at the peak of an athlete’s career. In August 2024, she was named an assistant coach at Kansas State while still competing full-time on the international stage. Now, two years later, as the First World Athletics Ultimate Championship prepares to debut in Budapest on September 11, she has been given a new role.

On June 17, World Athletics announced that Davis-Woodhall will be the ‘Ultimate Star’ of the first edition of the Ultimate Championship. She will compete in the women’s long jump, but also take on a second responsibility as the lead content creator for the event. She will help share stories from the championship while supporting other creators working around the competition. But why was she chosen for this role?

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe explained the decision. “Tara Davis-Woodhall has mastered the balancing act of being one of the best in the world in the long jump and sharing her authentic story with audiences using her own voice,” Coe said. “She has an extraordinary ability to create fandom while still pursuing excellence in athletics. We are proud to partner with her as part of the Ultimate Championship, which at its core is designed to showcase our athletes as the multi-dimensional stars they are.”

Interestingly, the role also seems to reflect a trend that has been seen in Tara Davis-Woodhall’s career. She’s established a huge social media following where she posts her training sessions, and behind-the-scenes photos from competitions and travels. She also shares personal, funny, and lighthearted posts with her husband, Paralympian sprinter Hunter Woodhall.

And Davis-Woodhall very well knows why storytelling matters in sport. “I think sports and content creation work together so well because there’s a story. Everyone has a story, and everyone’s story matters,” she told TheWrap.

Tara Davis-Woodhall has also been honest about the challenge behind it. “The hardest part about making content is constantly coming up with ideas, brainstorming, always trying to be creative. But when you’re making content about sports, that is the content,” she said. “We just film practice every single day and share that process, share the behind-the-scenes. It just makes sense, because that authentic thing that you’re doing, the thing you love, becomes the thing you share.”

That consistency has helped her grow a strong following of over 1.3 million on Instagram. As she steps into this new dual role in Budapest, Tara Davis-Woodhall sees it as a natural extension of who she already is. “The opportunity to not only compete but also help shape the stories told at the Ultimate Championship was something I couldn’t turn down,” she said. “I’m thrilled to see that with the Ultimate, World Athletics truly wants to celebrate all of my passions and interests…”

But the question arises: can this extra responsibility affect her journey as an athlete?

Tara Davis-Woodhall faces growing competition in season-ending showdown

The World Athletics Ultimate Championship in 2026 is being introduced as a new season-ending showcase for track and field. Built as a fast, three-day finale, it brings together Olympic champions, world champions, and the season’s best performers in one place. It also carries a record prize pool of around $10 million, with winners expected to earn close to $150,000.

Tara Davis-Woodhall is already confirmed in the long jump as a qualified athlete for the Budapest edition as the reigning Olympic and World Athletics Champion in women’s long jump. But the field around her is also strong, with several top-ranked athletes currently in qualification positions through world rankings, including Natalia Linares, Agate de Sousa, Monae’ Nichols, Hilary Kpatcha, Malaika Mihambo, Larissa Iapichino, and Claire Bryant. These athletes are not officially committed yet, but they are ranked in the top spots and will be in the running for the remaining positions in the field.

As for Tara, the 2026 season has already shown that she is still in excellent competitive form. She began her USATF Los Angeles Grand Prix strong with a world-leading 7.20m for the long jump, and then a wind-assisted 7.25m. The same day, she also went back to the 100m hurdles, setting her personal best time of 12.47 in just her second race in the event since 2021.

Although hurdles is not her primary event, she was able to perform at a high level, which shows her versatility in competing in a different event without losing her edge.