Hunter Woodhall and Tara Davis-Woodhall aren’t just names you’ll find on Paralympic and Olympic podiums—they’re a dynamic duo whose love story is as thrilling as their athletic feats. Woodhall, a double-amputee sprinter who tore up the track for Arkansas, and Davis-Woodhall, a long jump phenom who soared for Georgia, have racked up medals and headlines alike. But rewind to their college days, and you’ll find a scene that’s pure SEC drama: Hunter, sneaking into Tara’s hotel room during a meet, only to catch the Georgia coaches rolling their eyes and muttering, “Oh my God, here we go.” It’s a moment Woodhall recently relived with a laugh in his YouTube video, “Hunter talks about their relationship”. What started as a rivalry between Razorbacks and Bulldogs morphed into a partnership that’s equal parts fun and fierce. So, how did these two turn hotel hijinks into a trackside romance?

Before the Olympic and Paralympic gold medals, there were equally turbulent college days. Back then, Hunter and Tara were stars in the Southeastern Conference—Hunter repping Arkansas, Tara shining for Georgia. The SEC isn’t exactly known for warm and fuzzy vibes between rivals, and their meets were no exception. But for Hunter, those Georgia-Arkansas clashes were less about the competition and more about one thing: “Anytime we had a meet where Georgia and Arkansas were competing, I was most excited that I would get to see Tara.”Forget the sprints or the jumps—his real finish line was reuniting with his then-girlfriend. It’s the kind of priority shift that makes you wonder: what was it about those meets that lit up his world?

Turns out, the real action happened off the track. With teams staying at hotels—sometimes offsite for home meets, always on the road for away ones—Hunter and Tara turned logistics into a game of cat and mouse. “I remember like me and Tara would always be like sneaking into each other’s hotels,” Hunter recalled, painting a picture of late-night dashes and hushed giggles. The Georgia coaches? Not fans. “They hated me. They couldn’t stand me and they’d see me like, ‘Oh my God, here we go,’” he said, mimicking their exasperation. Meanwhile, the Arkansas staff took a chiller approach—when Tara popped by, Hunter noted, “The Arkansas coach would be like, ‘What’s up?’ It’s classic SEC chaos with a romantic twist. But how did this cloak-and-dagger routine shape their bond?

For Hunter, those sneaky moments weren’t just a thrill—they were the heartbeat of their journey. “I think like yeah just the journey together, like doing it together,” he reflected, highlighting how their shared grind as athletes fueled something deeper. The hotel shenanigans? “That was definitely like the highlight and still is,” he added. Fast forward to today, and that spark hasn’t faded: “We just have so much fun together and it just makes like the actual competing of it more fun.” It’s a vibe every sports fan can feel—two competitors finding joy in the grind, side by side. So, what’s the takeaway from this SEC love story?

Tara’s Olympic victory and a sweet celebration with Hunter

Tara Davis-Woodhall didn’t just leap her way to Olympic gold—she jumped straight into the arms of her biggest fan, Hunter Woodhall, in a moment that had every track junkie cheering. Picture this: Paris 2024, the women’s long jump final, and Tara, the Georgia-bred phenom, seals the deal with one last leap: 7.10m! Leaving behind the reigning champion, Malaika Mihambo. Hunter, the Paralympic sprint star, and her husband is right there, calling her “Olympic champion” before anyone else. It’s the kind of finish that’s pure sports magic, and these two lived it together. So how did this epic night unfold?

“I was in the middle of competition and that moment was my final jump,” she said, rewinding to the clutch moment in Paris. Leading up to it, she knew she’d won—“Up until that point I just wanted to jump one more time as the Olympic champion.” Distance? Didn’t matter. “I didn’t really care what I jumped, I just wanted to jump one more time, have the crowd in my hands,” she explained.

She soared, landed, and fell back into the sand, soaking it in as the stadium erupted. “I just took in the moment of hearing the crowd yell and scream and chant just because I had done what I had done is won the Olympic gold,” she recalled. But who was the first face she locked eyes with in that chaos?

Enter Hunter Woodhall, trackside and on edge until the very end. “It’s hard to put into words because it’s like such a special moment,” he said, reflecting on Tara’s triumph. Even with her leading, he wasn’t popping champagne early—“The whole competition although she was like leading the competition and jumping really well and really composed, like it’s sports so you never know what could happen.”

The final jumper went, and boom, Tara’s gold was locked. “Up until like seconds before that we did not know if she won,” Hunter admitted. Then came her victory lap jump, and he was floored: “I kind of was just sitting there in like awe just like I’m so happy for her.” That final leap? “It was kind of like the closure of it, of like it’s over, it’s done, like job is done,” he said. So how did they turn that tension into celebration?

Tara didn’t waste a second after that sand settled. “The only thing I could do is just run and jump into his arms and just celebrate with him.” That’s when the world got the money shot—Hunter, beaming, dubbed her “Olympic champion” on the spot. “It was one of the sweetest moments,” Tara gushed. “He was the first person to ever call me the Olympic champion.” From the stands to social media, fans ate it up—two athletes, one golden moment, pure joy. But what makes this duo’s story hit so hard?

Hunter marveled, still processing it, while Tara called it sweet perfection. This wasn’t just about a medal; it was about a shared grind, a final jump, and a love that’s as clutch as they come. From college meets to Olympic feats, Tara and Hunter keep proving they’re the ultimate team.