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Seminal Sperm Race Pits UCLA vs USC in Bid to Save Mankind
By Camilla Nguyen | 05 Jun, 2025
A raucous event pitting Trojan vs Bruin sperm athletes had the look of an epic frat prank but is described as an effort at sounding the alarm on plunging male fertility rates.
The world’s first ever sperm race was held at Downtown LA Studios Center in late April. The provocative idea was turned into a university wide event, attracting over a thousand USC and UCLA students. With ticket and exclusive merchandise sales, the event raised over $ 1.5 million.
From left to right: Noah Boat, Nina Lin, Sperm Race Referee
Sperm Racing is more than a rowdy spectacle; it’s an unconventional startup backed by investors and a 17-year-old entrepreneur named Eric Zhu who created the concept. The startup’s professed aim is to shed light on the global decline in male fertility through a combination of public health advocacy and live entertainment.
“Sperm racing isn’t just about racing sperm,” said Zhu in his manifesto. It’s about turning health into a competition. It’s about making male fertility something people actually want to talk about, track, and improve.”
The event leaned heavily on spectacle, featuring an R-rated halftime performance by West Coast rapper Ty Dolla Sign contributing to antics and atmospherics one might see in the pre-fight strutting preceding a UFC match.
But buried beneath the frat house humor was a serious health issue. According to a 2023 landmark meta analysis covering more than 57,000 men across 53 countries (Levine et al., 2023), global sperm counts have declined by over 50% since 1973. The female doctor who acted as Sperm Racing’s referee of sorts did make a point of emphasizing the impact on sperm health and motility of lifestyle choices like diet, stress levels, exercise, smoking, drinking, and sleep. Sperm racing candor, albeit often humorously, did tend to destigmatize the conversation around male fertility.
The Sperm Racing event comprised two races: an undercard contest between the gametes of Youtuber Jimmy Zhang and influencer Noah Boat and the main event pitting the products of Tristan Mykel Wilcher (20, USC) against those of Asher Proeger (19, UCLA) in a best-of-three contest.
Participants provided their sperm samples, presumably produced and collected hours before the event began to ensure optimal performance. The sperm were slated to be released into an 8-inch transparent microfluidic track designed to simulate the female reproductive system.
The sperm raced through an 8-inch microfluidic track, with those of USC's Proeger (top) vs. UCLA's Wilcher (bottom)
In the undercard Zhang’s sperm proved to have better motility than Boat’s, out-swimming the competition by a mile, so to speak. In reality, of course, the distances covered by the sperm would be measured in centimeters.
In the main event Wilcher’s progeny won the first round easily, and Proeger’s took the second with even more aplomb, making the third a high stakes tiebreaker. After a close race throughout it ultimately won by a single extra speedy sperm of Wilcher’s who pulled ahead of both packs in the final exhilarating instant.
As the first-ever sperm racing champion, Wilcher took home the $10,000 grand prize and a gold-sperm trophy. He spoke proudly of his plans to give the trophy a prominent place of honor.
“Sperm racing isn’t just a joke,” Zhu insisted. “It’s not just some viral idea for the internet to laugh at. It’s something much bigger.”
With its successful debut drawing national attention and generating substantial revenue, Sperm Racing plans to expand its operations and host events in other cities to continue breaking down the stigma surrounding men’s fertility.
Despite his youth, Zhu is already a serious serial entrepreneur, having also started Aviato, a tech startup that provides a database and API to allow users to track funding rounds and headcount of startup companies. Zhu claims to have started Aviato in his bathroom. One might be excused for wondering if Sperm Racing had a similar birthplace.
"Sperm racing isn't just a joke," Zhu insisted. "It's not just some viral idea for the internet to laugh at. It's something much bigger."
Screenshot of Sperm Race live stream (from left to right): Brandon Yoon, Gabe Cataldi (BeastChild), Eric Ou
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