KANSAS CITY, Kan. (Sept. 26, 2024) – Kansas Speedway announced today that Olympic gold medalist Tara Davis-Woodhall and Paralympic gold medalist Hunter Woodhall will give the command to start engines prior to Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 presented by ESPN BET.
“The prestige of earning a gold medal on the world stage is second to none,” said Kansas Speedway President Pat Warren. “We’re honored to have such respected athletes in Tara and Hunter say the most famous words in motorsports before we kick off another race at the most exciting track in NASCAR.”
The couple is one of the most accomplished duos in all of modern Track and Field. Tara, a two-time Olympian, recently won gold in the Women’s Long Jump at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. She was named an assistant track and field coach at Kansas State University in August. The 25-year-old from Agoura Hills, Calif. also set an American Junior Women’s Record for the Indoor Long Jump at the Dumanis Sports Group Prep Classic in 2017.
Hunter, based out of Syracuse, Utah, is a three-time Paralympian and most recently took home gold in the Men’s 400 m T62 in Paris this summer. Upon graduating from high school in 2016, Woodhall became the first double-amputee track and field athlete to earn a Division I athletic scholarship, which he accepted from the University of Arkansas.
NASCAR returns to Kansas Speedway this weekend with four incredible races over three days. It begins Friday with a NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series/ARCA Menards Series doubleheader and continues Saturday with the NASCAR Xfinity Series‘ Kansas Lottery 300. Then on Sunday, the stars of the NASCAR Cup Series will compete in the Hollywood Casino 400 presented by ESPN BET, the first race in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs‘ Round of 12.
Tickets for all seats are on sale and can be purchased at www.kansasspeedway.com.
About Kansas Speedway
Kansas Speedway is a premier motorsports facility in the Midwest. The track, which opened in 2001, hosts two NASCAR Cup Series weekends each year, along with approximately 200 other event days each year. This includes the annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue, the largest barbecue competition in the world which attracts teams both nationally and internationally. The Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway, which opened in 2012, overlooks Turn 2 of the track. Kansas Speedway’s two NASCAR weekends in 2024 will take place May 4-5 and Sept. 27-29. Fans can purchase tickets at www.kansasspeedway.com and get all of the latest information by downloading the NASCAR tracks app at www.kansasspeedway.com/
About NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 14 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR sanctions races in three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series™), four international series (NASCAR Brasil Series, NASCAR Mexico Series, NASCAR Canada Series, NASCAR Whelen Euro Series), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour) and a local grassroots series (NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in five cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races annually in 12 countries and more than 30 U.S. states.
For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, X and Snapchat.
Source: Kansas Speedway | NASCAR Communications
