On the track and at home with Paris 2024 golden couple Tara Davis-Woodhall and Hunter Woodhall
Olympics.com spoke to the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic champions about how they hype each other up at athletics meets, what love and sport have in common, and why they are hoping their golden loot in the French capital will earn them extra authority among their pets.
Less than a month after winning the women’s long jump at the 2024 Olympic Games, Tara Davis-Woodhall could not remember where she had placed her shiny gold medal. Fortunately, her husband Hunter Woodhall knew exactly where to find it.
"She literally asked me... 'I hope my medal’s somewhere!' 'Don't worry, baby, it's right next to mine'," Woodhall recalled about his wife's medal search a few hours after he won his own Paris 2024 gold in the Paralympic men's 400m T62.
It has been a whirlwind month for the athletics-Para athletics power duo with Davis-Woodhall jumping to Olympic gold on 8 August, and Woodhall racing to Paralympic gold on 6 September.
Two near identical medals – same colour, both with a piece of the Eiffel Tower in them, but also with slight variations. Davis-Woodhall's has the Olympic rings engraved on it along with the Greek goddess Nike, while Woodhall’s features the iconic Parisian tower and “Paris 2024” written in braille. Blue ribbon for the wife. Red for the husband.
Winning these medals one month apart was one of the most memorable moments in the couple's relationship, they said, second only to their October 2022 wedding.
"It's up there," Davis-Woodhall said.
Her husband agreed: "It was the most amazing sports moment ever. It's at the top of my highlight reel.
"Just because we've done this whole entire process together, not just this year, but the past six years, going through so many trials and tribulations and injuries and bad seasons. And then finally, both of us just deciding, 'Hey, we want to do something really special in Paris', and the lead-up to that and then all of that hard work and sacrifice led to those two incredible moments that neither of us will ever forget."
Hyping each other up, the Woodhall way
There were up to 80,000 spectators packing Stade de France every evening of the Olympic and Paralympic Games to watch the world’s best athletes compete in track and field. While those were among the most coveted tickets at Paris 2024, the Woodhalls would readily choose to be on the field of play instead of being onlookers. Especially on the nights when their significant other was competing.
"I would rather compete," Davis-Woodhall said. "I don't like to watch."
"It can be scary to watch" Woodhall added. "But honestly, this year it's been so easy to watch her compete. She's just absolutely dominated. And I feel like we've made it pretty easy on each other. We've been doing good."
Doing "good" is an understatement as both went away from Paris 2024 with gold medals. Woodhall also picked up a bronze in the 4x100m universal relay with his USA teammates Tatyana McFadden, Taylor Swanson, and Noah Malone.
A big part of their joint success is the support the husband and wife give to each other. Having similar goals, they said, makes their sports careers and personal lives easier to balance.
"It simplifies everything," Woodhall said. "This sport is so demanding physically, mentally, emotionally, and I think if you're not able to be in those shoes or understand how difficult it is, it can be extremely hard in our position. So I think having us both in the same sport, it just makes it so much easier and so much more fun."
The Woodhalls often train together and even challenge each other to races, not forgetting the requisite trash talking after.
There are plenty of encouraging words exchanged between them at these training sessions as well.
"We have one thing on our mind and that's winning and being the best versions of ourselves," Davis-Woodhall said. "So when one of us isn't there, the other one hypes them up and holds them accountable of like, 'Hey, let's do this. Let's be there for each other and let's go to practice. This is just a bad day'. And when that's happening, it's like you can't do anything but succeed."
Woodhall got a big sprinkling of that can-do energy when he woke up on the morning of his 400m final. His wife was jumping, dancing, and screaming, excited about the day ahead. He hastened to join her.
"We were playing music and just turning the place up, so the vibes were good," Woodhall recalled. "I think we just speak confidence into each other. We know how hard we've worked. We know we're prepared, so it's just telling each other, 'You can do it. You got this'."
The Olympic long jump champion Tara Davis-Woodhall and the Paralympic 400m T62 champion Hunter Woodhall trained together in the lead up to Paris 2024.
Life at home: Two champions, three pets, many plants
The champion couple carries the fun atmosphere from their time on the track into their home life as well. Aside from music, their house is filled with sounds of tv shows, the smell of home cooking, and the scuttering of their cat Azula and dogs Milo and Winnie. The canines even served as ring bearers at their wedding.
Now that both of their human parents are Paris 2024 gold medallists, Woodhall is hoping the animal trio will give him and his wife more respect around the house.
"We're going to sit them down at the table and we're going to say, 'Listen guys, mommy and daddy went out there and we did our jobs and it's time to respect us. OK? We're putting our feet down. We're laying the law'," Woodhall said with a laugh.
The fact that the two athletes relish quiet time at home may surprise those who have seen them jet setting to competitions around the world and screaming in support of each other from the stands. Looks can be deceptive, however.
"We're big homebodies," Woodhall said. "I think maybe people wouldn't know that, that we would prefer spending our time at home with our animals and our plants."
While Woodhall is the one usually keeping track of the family’s belongings, his wife is the soul behind their "plant household". Describing herself as "obsessed with plants", Davis-Woodhall said she puts her husband on watering duty sometimes, but she is still the primary plant parent.
"The only reason why my plants are alive is because of me!" she said.
As in their joint training on the track, there is no shortage of banter like this in the Woodhall house. And that is just how the champion spouses like it.
"What do love and sport have in common? Love and sport have in common that they both take a lot of work," Woodhall said. "It's not easy, but in the end, it's always worth it."
