Just a month ago, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone had her moment in Paris, snagging two Olympic gold medals. Now today Hunter Woodhall has won his in Paris. The para-athlete has claimed his first gold at the Paralympics, and that too in his trademark men’s 400m T62 event. But in the turn of fate, both these athletes are now finding themselves in a similar situation, and credit goes to the Diamond League. 

The 400m hurdles Olympic champion had received a ‘Global Wild Card’ to enter the Diamond League final in Brussels next weekend. However, her inclusion did not abide by the rules, as several voices raised the issue. As a result, the authority declared SML not eligible to enter the final event without competing in any of the DL meets this season. Now, Hunter Woodhall is also counting himself the same—without having a ticket to compete in DL. So after winning his Paralympic event, the athlete took to his social media handle to bring his demand to the fore. 

Today on his Thread handle, Hunter shared a snippet showing Jonnie Peacock demanding for para-athletes to find a place on the roster of the Diamond League. The British athlete didn’t mince his words while targeting the Diamond League authority. His steadfast question remained, “If I’m honest, I just want to say, why are the Diamond Leagues not letting us run?” Woodhall captioned the post with the lines, “Couldn’t agree more.” Not just posting with a straightforward question, but Peacock put in the issue the para-athletes are facing right now, regarding finding a global tournament to compete in. 

In the Paris Paralympics, Jonnie helped his mixed 4x100m international relay squad to clinch the silver. They just came behind the USA team, starring Hunter Woodhall. But it is only the platform of the Paralympics where the bunches are getting the limelight or their rivalries getting hyped, as alleged by Peacock. He continued to add, “This is a good race. And this is an advert for Para sports.” In the following moment, he took his argument directly to Sebastian Coe, the chief of World Athletics. 

As per the rules, World Athletics dictates the entry levels in the global contests, including the Diamond League. Therefore, Sebastian Coe should be the prime brain in defining the qualifications for the Diamond League as well. So when, the 31-year-old para-athlete dropped, “Put this race in the Diamond League. We deserve to be there,” that bound Hunter Woodhall in a similar thread. Nonetheless, another para-athlete has brought in the same issue a few days ago. 

A big name supports Hunter Woodhall’s plea

Among the current grain of global contests, Diamond League comes at the top in several aspects. The financial help picks the top vote in this contest, whereas the limelight has never been less. On the other hand, para-athletics have to bear the fangs of the lack of these two elements from time to time. In fact, several para-athletes couldn’t hide their disbelief after seeing such a huge crowd at the Stade de France to watch the Paris Paralympics. Rather, performances of para-athletes like Hunter Woodhall attracted a lot of starry presence in the gallery. So Nathan Maguire, the wheelchair racer, wants the trend to continue, and Diamond League can be a form to support that. 

As per him, “We’re showing that there’s an appetite for para-athletics and we need to be put into events like the Diamond League to give the people what they want.” In his T54 1500m event at the Paris Paralympics, the racer presented a neck-to-neck fight. However, the result did not go in his favor. But he was happy with his performance as he had to push his limits to make a respectable position after a good competition. Diamond League can be another contest that will hold a similar platform. What is your opinion on the demand of Hunter Woodhall and other para-athletes? Let us know.