Tara Davis and Hunter Woodhall have made a name for themselves in athletics but how their love life unfolded is something that has not ben fully explained.
The Woodhalls’ love story reads like the script of a feel-good sports movie.
It seems like just yesterday that America’s golden couple lovingly celebrated their Paris 2024 victories in each other’s arms. While it has taken hardwork and effort to earn their burgeoning reputation, the couple have handled their love life with perfection even as their social media influence continues to rise.
The Olympics long jump champion has been left praying for the best after the tragedy killed at least 10 people and caused severe damage to property in the area where she has a home.
But how did it all start for Tara, the Olympic women’s long jump champion, and her husband, Hunter, the men’s 400m T62 Paralympic champion.? Pulse Sports takes a look at when the American perfect duo had an eye on each other and the events that followed after.
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It all started in 2017 at the Simplot Games, an indoor track meet in Idaho. As Tara recalled, it was Hunter’s 18th birthday, and the announcer had just mentioned it over the speakers.
Hunter had just finished running the 400m when Tara walked up to him out of the blue and said, “I don’t know why, but I just feel like I need to give you a hug. I shot my shot,” Tara explained in the Beyond The Records podcast. “Women just know what they want,” she added.
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That spontaneous moment sparked a connection, leading to their first date, pizza, where Tara confessed she had to suppress her impatience as they waited over an hour for their food. “I’m a ‘can I speak to the manager’ kind of person. I’m that person, unfortunately. But I saved it for this first date, I held my tongue, I didn’t allow it to come out. And I told him afterward, do you know how hard it was for me not to freak out?” she laughed.
After their initial meeting, Tara and Hunter followed each other on social media, stayed in touch and officially started dating that summer in June 2017.
Although they both started college at different universities that fall — Davis at the University of Georgia before transferring to the University of Texas, and Hunter at the University of Arkansas — they stayed together through the distance, per Town & Country. Although the pair remained together throughout their respective college experiences, the distance wasn’t always easy, and required consistent effort from both athletes to make it work.
After getting engaged during a romantic getaway in Mexico in September 2021, Tara and Hunter wed on October 16, 2022, at D’Vine Grace Vineyard in McKinney, Texas. The couple exchanged vows in a ceremony officiated by Woodhall’s teammate, Trenten Merrill. The couple’s two dogs, Milo and Winnie, served as ring bearers, in a ceremony attended by about 200 family members and friends.
While the Arkansas-based pair are no longer doing long distance, they still work on communicating and prioritizing their relationship amidst the demands of being professional athletes. To cherish their time together, they are documenting shared memories by creating and posting videos, which have eventually become their golden ticket to success.
