Hunter Woodhall’s ecstatic emotions caught the world’s eye after his wife, Tara Davis-Woodhall, won an Olympic gold medal in the women’s long jump. In a moment that went viral on social media, Woodhall could be heard shouting, “Oh my God, baby, you’re the Olympic champion!”
Woodhall, 25, had both his legs amputated below the knees because he was born with a condition called fibular hemimelia, which stops lower limbs from developing properly.
He will compete in the 100-meter T64, 400-meter T62 and the 4x100 universal relay races starting Sunday — events that are highly anticipated by fans who have a newfound love for him and his wife. (Classifications of T61-64 are for athletes with lower-limb impairments who compete with a prosthesis.)
“I definitely feel like that moment has helped create some excitement for the Games. I’ve never seen this much excitement for the Paralympics,” Woodhall said about his viral moment cheering on his wife. “It’s so special to me.”
A three-time Paralympian, he has won one silver and two bronze medals. This year, he believes he can win gold. Fans grew concerned when Woodhall tested positive for the coronavirus roughly two weeks before the Paralympics, but Woodhall said he focused on recovering and is prepared to compete.
Perfecting his blades
In the past year, Woodhall has focused on perfecting his setup, after a heartbreaking moment in the 2023 World Athletics Championships when the prosthetic running blades he uses broke right before his race. He now runs with a new pair of blades that are customized for him. Figuring out the right amount of stiffness and length for his blades — while accounting for factors such as speed and stride length — can be a challenge.
“I’m in a boost of confidence, knowing the setup I’m on is exactly what I need,” he said. “It’s been making a huge difference. I’m running the best I’ve ever ran.”
Proof of that came in July, at the U.S. Paralympic Team Trials, when Woodhall set Americas records in both the men’s 100-meter T62 race with a time of 10.75 seconds, and the 400-meter T62 race with a time of 46.09 seconds.
Another advantage he has this time around: Unlike his training for the previous Summer Paralympics, he has been able to train beside his wife nearly every day over the past two years. (They were a long-distance couple until 2021).
On a typical day, the pair warm up, practice on the track with their shared coach, cook and then recover on the couch, where they review footage from their practice and chat about what they are doing well and what they need to fix.
“We’re keeping each other accountable for everything,” Woodhall said. “We’re coaching each other all the time.”
By doing so, they have pushed each other to improve, said their coach, Travis Geopfert, who is also the new director of track and field and cross-country at Kansas State University.
“He’s always been motivated, but he’s been taking it to the next level,” Geopfert said. “They both have a great eye for the sport.”
A power couple on the track and on TikTok
The couple’s love story started on a track. In 2017, when he was in high school, Woodhall attended a meet in Idaho that Davis-Woodhall was also competing in.
In a YouTube video, Davis-Woodhall recalls the first time she saw Woodhall, saying, “I was warming up for hurdles, and I just saw him, and I was like, ‘Ooh, who’s that?’ ”
Woodhall said he already knew who she was because she was “such a great athlete,” but it was she who made the first move: After his 400-meter race, she gave him a hug. Later, they began following each other on social media and started dating. They married in 2022.
Woodhall and Davis-Woodhall are both track and field aficionados, and one of their favorite things to do together is watch meets. They regularly attend each other’s competitions and cheer each other on.
Though they’re both laid back, funny and athletic, they have different strengths in running, Geopfert said. Woodhall is really good at “finishing” his races (he doesn’t slow down after he hits his top speed), and Davis-Woodhall is really good at accelerating quickly, which is something Woodhall struggles with, Geopfert said.
Outside track, Woodhall said, they love to watch sunsets from their porch with their two dogs, travel to new places, and play board games with their friends. “It gets extremely competitive. We hate losing, love winning. But we’re the best when we’re on a team together,” Woodhall said. He also loves Legos, and said Davis-Woodhall gets him new Legos for his birthday or Christmas each year.
Both their individual and joint Instagram and TikTok accounts are filled with videos of them being silly, competing and enjoying life together. Woodhall’s individual TikTok account boasts over 3 million followers.
This type of fan support, along with a sponsorship deal from sportswear company Lululemon, makes their athletic careers possible. For example, a new pair of running blades for Woodhall can cost $20,000 or more — an amount he wouldn’t be able to afford otherwise, he said.
“All the people who have supported us: They’ve changed our lives,” Woodhall said.
Becoming a Paralympic star
Geopfert, who has been Woodhall’s coach since college, credits him with making Paralympic track and field more popular. He believes Woodhall is an example for other amputees, to show them what is possible.
“Hunter’s story is amazing on so many levels,” Geopfert said. “He proves that no matter what it is, if you put your mind to something, you can have success.”
But Woodhall never expected to be a top athlete. As a child, he had been bullied over his disability. Although he tried various team sports, his coaches rarely gave him opportunities to play, he said.
“They had me riding the bench a lot, because they didn’t know how to coach me or they didn’t feel comfortable putting me in or didn’t want me to get hurt,” Woodhall said. “When I found track, it wasn’t that way. It was just me versus the track.”
When he started running track in fifth grade, he said, he was “really bad” and was running at the back of the pack. But for Woodhall, it wasn’t about winning: It was about improving and feeling the freedom of running.
“The ability to run is something we often take for granted, and I’ve been in a lot of positions where maybe I have sores on my legs or issues with my prosthetics, where I’m not able to run,” he said. “And in those times I’m like, ‘Man, I miss running so much.’ ”
Woodhall stuck with it and quickly rose to the top of the sport. He competed in his first Paralympics at age 17 and was the first double amputee athlete to earn an NCAA Division I track scholarship, attending the University of Arkansas.
Over the past few years, viral videos on social media — such as the one of him cheering on his wife — have elevated Woodhall to another level of stardom. Yet, even with such visibility, he said he is not putting more pressure on himself to succeed. Instead, regardless of how he performs, he plans to celebrate all his hard work with Davis-Woodhall at his side — and is happy just to be competing.
“This sport has given me everything: It’s given me my relationship with Tara, it’s shown me the entire world,” he said. “And it’s given me a passion to wake up and fight for something.”
