“CLUTCHED 💎 ALWAYS BELIEVE IN YOURSELF… no matter what!” Tara Davis-Woodhall had written after her Prefontaine Classic win. Davis‑Woodhall, Olympic and World Champion, stepped onto Hayward Field on July 5, 2025, hungry for greatness. After two strong but non-winning jumps, she faced fierce rivals: Olympic silver medalist Malaika Mihambo and rising star Claire Bryant. What happened next?

The 26-year-old sprinted down the runway on her final attempt. She soared. The sand erupted at 7.07 m, tying the world lead, and she clinched gold. But this alone did not impress this American coach. You could also tell how well an event was going by hearing the cheer from the crowd. As the meet went on and the marks were better, the cheering got louder. This is what Rodney Green and Justin Gatlin talked about in the recent podcast.

In the episode aired on July 9, 2025, Gatlin confessed, “Every time she steps on that runway, it has to be a spectacle. And she always delivers when she shows up in this manner. She’s like, ‘I’m here. Everyone clap for me. I’m about to jump.’ And she goes out there, ties the world lead.” The 2024 Olympic champion exhorted the hushed crowd to join hands and clap her way down the long jump runway. The crowd obliged the charismatic Olympian, creating enough noise to delay the track event’s start briefly.

“I’ve never seen an athlete be that clutch in those situations, man. Who shows so much confidence when they do it? Usually, when you have clutch athletes, they’re kind of calm. They’re within themselves, and they’re like, ‘I don’t want no one messing with me.’ And go down there and compete and get the job done. But for her, she’s just like, ‘I’m here. Time to play. Game’s on.’ Bow,” he continued. Even in interviews, Davis‑Woodhall has shared how refreshed and pumped she feels heading into major events.

She is excited to live up to the hype of being the “great long jumper” at the track and field World Athletics Championships Tokyo 2025 in two months. “I’m fresh. I’m fresher than I have ever been,” she said assuredly to Olympics.com at the Diamond League in Stockholm last month. Who knows, she might put on another clutch performance here.

Tara Davis-Woodhall is a clutch player

In Glasgow at the 2024 World Indoor Championships, Davis-Woodhall’s dreams were in danger. She appeared in full control until the third round, when teammate Monae’ Nichols jumped ahead with a 6.83 m effort. Despite holding the lead early on, Tara found herself chasing the top spot by the fourth round. Rather than fold under mounting pressure, she narrowed her focus, visualized her mark, and unleashed a colossal 7.07 m leap in the fourth round, solidifying her grip on the gold medal. That decisive jump, followed by a strong 7.03 m in the final round, won her the gold.

In Eugene, Oregon, at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials, Tara found herself on the brink of elimination. With the weight of Olympic dreams hanging in the balance, she scratched her first two attempts in the long jump final—each a crushing setback. Poised on the edge with only one leap left, she steadied herself with focused determination and cleared a legal 6.64 m, earning a lifeline into the finals. That jump was just the beginning.

Channeling that moment of relief and reset, she soared to a stunning 7.00 m in the fifth round, claiming the Trials title and sealing her ticket to Paris with style. She would then go on to put up one great show in Paris – the cowboy celebration, the claps, and hugging her husband straight out of the sand. Further, there’s an interesting story of her throwing the medal at him as well.

While that’s that, what do you think of her recent performance?