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Athletics

Hunter Woodhall and Tara Davis — The coolest couple to watch out at the Tokyo Olympics

Tara and Hunter are the most unique and wholesome couple at the Olympics, already taking social media by fire

Hunter Woodhall and Tara Davis at the US Olympic trials
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Hunter Woodhall and Tara Davis at the US Olympic trials (Source: Team USA)

By

Naveed Mohammed

Updated: 18 July 2021 12:29 PM GMT

"Please welcome Mr and Mrs --," such a shout at the entrance of the reception room always made heads turn during a Victorian Ball. Couples accompanying each other at significant events are always talking points, and grapevine creeps into social circles.

The biggest sporting event, the Olympics, is no exception. While couples competing at the same Olympics aren't something new, Tara Davis and Hunter Woodhall are the most unexpected and wholesome.

Tara and Hunter, the duo who were cheering each other during their Olympic trials, made 'Couplegoals' on social media. Now, the duo's time to shine on the big stage has come, Woodhall in T44 400m at the Tokyo Paralympics and Davis in the Long jump at the Tokyo Olympics, after both qualified in style for the big event in Tokyo.

So how did the couple's paths cross? It was the 2017 Simplot indoor games; Woodhall was coming off the track after winning the 400m when Tara, out of the blue, hugged him and said, 'Hey, I just feel like I need to give you a hug." Woodhall couldn't muster the courage to approach Tara for the rest of the meet as he was too nervous. Luckily the social jitters wore off as Hunter and Tara connected on social media and started to bond.

The journey to the Olympics hasn't been easy for Hunter, who had both of his legs amputated at the age of 11 fibular hemimelia, a defect where a part/entire fibula bone is missing. The doctor's said Hunter might never walk again, to which he now jokingly says, "So, I decided to run." Hunter embraced his disability, set the track on fire, and became the first double-amputee athlete to be offered a Division 1 NCAA scholarship.

Hunter, having already won a Silver and a Bronze for Team USA at the Paralympics in Rio, is looking to add to his tally with 100m and 400m qualifications for Tokyo.

Davis, a University of Texas Athlete, burst onto the scene after breaking the legendary Jackie Joyner-Kersee's US Collegiate Long jump record that stood for 36 years. With a 7.04m jump, Davis secured her spot in Tokyo between Brittney Reese and Quanesha Burkes, who finished 1st and 3rd, respectively, at the US Olympic trials.

Hunter became a massive hit on Social media and gained many fans as he shared his inspiring journey of overcoming the odds to make it to the Olympics on TikTok. One of those fans was the famous Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, who invited Woodhall to the show and donated $20,000 for his Olympic journey.

Fame from "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" continued as Hunter with his partner Tara started the Youtube channel 'Tara and Hunter', which has over 274k subscribers. The couple dwells on their Athletic careers and Long distance relationship on their YouTube channel. Tara and Hunter revealed that they have signed with Champion in their recent vlog as the couple officially turn pro.

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