Olympic and world long-jump champion Tara Davis-Woodhall says she is “lucky and blessed to be alive” after suffering a severe concussion in a head-on car crash while driving to a training session last week.
The 27-year-old American revealed details of the frightening accident on Wednesday and shared dashcam footage showing another vehicle turning out of a parking lot and moving into her lane before the two cars collided almost head-on. Both vehicles were travelling at around 20mph and were written off in the crash.
Davis-Woodhall said she did not suffer life-threatening injuries but sustained a severe concussion and other injuries that have prevented her from returning to training.
“I’m lucky and blessed to be alive,” the Olympic champion said, adding that she has been working with doctors and physiotherapists as she begins her recovery. She also acknowledged that the accident has affected her mentally as well as physically.
The timing of the accident is particularly difficult for Davis-Woodhall because she had been preparing for the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest, scheduled for September 11-13.
The reigning world champion said she had been in some of the best form of her career before the crash, describing herself as being at the peak of her training. She has not trained since the accident and remains uncertain whether she will be fit enough to compete in Budapest.
Davis-Woodhall won Olympic gold in the women's long jump at the Paris 2024 Games before becoming world champion at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. Her success has made her one of the leading figures in American track and field.
The upcoming Ultimate Championship is a major new event featuring some of the world's top athletes, with a $10 million overall prize pool and $150,000 awarded to each individual winner. Davis-Woodhall is also involved with the event as its lead content creator.
For now, however, competition has taken a back seat as Davis-Woodhall focuses on her health. She said she is taking her recovery one day at a time while working with her medical team to determine when she can safely return to training.
Her participation in Budapest remains uncertain, but after walking away from a serious collision without life-threatening injuries, the Olympic champion is grateful simply to be recovering and looking ahead.