"I definitely self medicated quite a bit" - Alexis Ohanian relates to Sha'Carri Richardson as he opens up on time after losing his mother

Alexis Ohanian opened up on the time when he lost his mother, and how the life and struggles of Olympic champion sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson was strikingly similar. The co-founder of Reddit and the brains behind the Athlos NYC recently opened up on his life in a podcast with former sprinting legend Justin Gatlin.

Ohanian was the special guest at the recent podcast by the YouTube channel 'Ready Set Go', jointly operated by Gatlin and his partner, Bahamian athlete Rodney Green. The American entrepreneur talked on various subjects, including the inaugural edition of Athlos NYC, held successfully in the New York City on September 26.

Ohanian recounted his personal loss, and how his struggles were relatable with that of Richardson. In his words,

"She gets uh, the the the, you know with the passing of her mother, and then this, this w*d charge. I'm like, 'that's kind of f****d up'. Like I mean I lost my mom, when I was just starting out Reddit, um I definitely self-medicated quite a bit bit, using uh the Mary Jane, and I'm like, I know that's not a performance enhancing drug...." [3:00 onwards]

For the unversed, Sha'Carri Richardson was accused of using performance enhancing drugs in 2021. When it turned out that she had taken cannabis, the USADA exonerated her of wilful doping, but suspended her for a month, making her miss out on the Tokyo Olympics.

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Alexis Ohanian on shielding his daughter from his fitness woes

Alexis Ohanian with his daughter Olympia at the Athlos NYC [Image Source : Getty]

In the podcast with Justin Gatlin, Alexis Ohanian also opened up on his fitness struggles during his younger years. When asked about his personal best, Ohanian exclaimed in disbelief,

"Are you kidding me? Did you see me walking in here? Big Fella doesn’t sprint. The only time I ran was high school football as a punishment. There is no scenario where I come out good in that."

"A 41-year-old out-of-shape dad sprinting 100m, no one wants that. I gotta think of the legacy I leave behind for my little girls. And I don’t know if they need to see that on tape”, he further added.

In April 2024, Alexis Ohanian declared that his venture, Seven Seventy Six, would invest in an exclusive, women's only track event, that will promote women's sports in a new way. Initially referred to as the '776 invitational', the track meet was renamed Athlos after the Greek word for athletics. The American entrepreneur also revealed how his experience with the women's soccer team, especially players like Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe inspired him towards Athlos.

The women's-only track league was inaugurated by Ohanian on September 26 at the Icahn Stadium in the New York City. 36 female athletes from all over the world participated in six events. The winner took home a prize money of $60000, while the runner up would receive $25000 and the second runner up would receive a prize money of $15000.