American track and field standout Tara Davis-Woodhall joined a chorus of U.S. athletes celebrating the news that every U.S. Olympian and Paralympian will now receive a significant financial reward for competing at the Games. Billionaire financier Ross Stevens, founder and CEO of Stone Ridge Holdings, makes this unprecedented support possible. Last March, Stevens made headlines with a record-breaking $100 million donation to the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee, a sum he had initially promised to the University of Pennsylvania.
This comes as a major boost for all US Olympians and Paralympians, especially ahead of the Milan Winter Olympics in February and the Winter Paralympics in March.
Tara Davis-Woodhall’s Reaction to Stevens’ Gift
The donation from Stevens created the Stevens Financial Security Awards, a program that will now donate $200,000 per Games to every U.S. Olympian and Paralympian – regardless of medal performance – starting with the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics and extending through at least 2032. The amount will be split into two $100,000 portions: one deferred 20 years after their first eligible Olympic appearance (or at age 45, whichever is later), and the other as a death benefit payable to family.
As the news was broken in a post on Instagram, many athletes shared their reactions, including Tara Davis-Woodhall, who commented: “Well this is news to me,”
Former track athlete and three-time Olympic gold medalist Angelo Taylor also wrote: “This would’ve been nice when I was competing. I made 4 Olympic teams.”
Natasha Wodak, the Canadian long-distance runner who competed at the Rio 2016 Games and the Tokyo 2020 Games, commented: “Some quick math will tell you that this is not real. The 2024 games had something like 590 US athletes. That’s over 100M paid out in one Olympics!”
American gymnast Yul Moldauer, who competed at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, wrote: “This is honestly amazing! Thank you Ross Steven!”
This initiative arrives at a crucial moment for many U.S. athletes, who have long faced financial instability and struggled to secure their futures in sports.
Davis-Woodhall’s Olympic Record
Tara Davis-Woodhall has already left her mark on two Olympic Games: Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024. In Tokyo, she soared 6.84 meters in the long jump final, finishing sixth despite battling two fractured vertebrae, a broken ankle, and a hip injury. In Paris, she electrified the crowd with a 7.10-meter jump on her very first attempt, capturing gold and her first Olympic medal.
Stevens’ gift will be a huge boost not just for her, but also for her husband, Hunter Woodhall, a Paralympic track and field athlete who has won 5 Paralympic medals across three Games.