Mr. Koby Kushner reports

ATHENA REPORTS FURTHER ENCOURAGING VISUAL RESULTS FROM HOLES 2 AND 3 AT LAIRD LAKE

Athena Gold Corp. has provided an exploration update from its continuing maiden drill campaign at its flagship Laird Lake project in Ontario's Red Lake gold district. The company is currently awaiting on assays from hole LL-26-001 which intersected a broad zone of sulphidized banded iron formation (see company press release dated April 21, 2026), which is expected in the coming weeks. Holes LL-26-002 and LL-26-003 were designed to test the prospective Balmer-Confederation assemblage contact on the eastern portion of the project, as well as newly modelled geophysical anomalies. Core logging indicates that both holes successfully intersected this key geological boundary, while also intersecting alteration, veining and sulphide mineralization that the company believes are consistent with a classic Red Lake style mineralizing environment.

"Intersecting the Balmer-Confederation contact in both holes 2 and 3 is a major technical milestone for Athena at Laird," said Koby Kushner, chief executive officer of Athena. "This contact is one of the most important gold-bearing structures in the Red Lake gold district, and our drilling is now confirming that the same architecture exists on our ground. The fact that we are also cutting sulphide mineralization and 'Red Lake style' alteration along the boundary as well as intersecting mineralization deeper in the holes near newly modelled geophysical plates gives us strong encouragement as we await assays from the first three holes. Meanwhile, we have moved onto hole 4, which is designed to test the G4 anomaly."

Drill hole discussion

Hole LL-26-002 was drilled to test the interpreted Balmer-Confederation contact and newly modelled conductor anomalies on the eastern portion of the project. Core logging indicates the hole intersected the boundary near the top of the hole and cut strongly altered mafic to ultramafic volcanic rocks with quartz-carbonate-diopside veining and sulphide mineralization. Mineralization appears concentrated near lithological contacts and structural zones, including a local banded iron formation interval with vein-hosted pyrite and a deeper gabbroic interval containing blebby and fracture-filling pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite, will be assayed for its critical mineral potential. This hole undercuts the historic GBZ zone which has returned grab samples of up to 78 grams per tonne Au (gold) within a banded iron formation which is interpreted to have been intersected at approximately 116 m depth within LL-26-002.

Hole LL-26-003 was drilled along the same eastern target corridor to further test the contact and the down-plunge continuation of the modelled geophysical anomalies approximately 200 m west of LL-26-002. Core logging confirms that the hole also intersected the Balmer-Confederation contact, with strong deformation, pervasive silica-carbonate-diopside-biotite alteration, quartz-carbonate veining, and associated sulphide mineralization developed at and adjacent to the contact. Visual results from LL-26-003 provide evidence of the geological boundary and the associated mineralizing system.

Athena believes these observations in both holes are consistent with a classic Red Lake style mineralizing environment. Assay results are pending and are expected to be received in June.

Qualified persons statement

The technical information presented in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Benjamin Kuzmich, PGeo, vice-president of exploration for Athena Gold, and the qualified person for exploration at the Laird Lake project, as defined by National Instrument 43-101 -- Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Mineralization on nearby or adjacent projects is not necessarily indicative of mineralization at Laird Lake.

About Athena Gold Corp.

Athena is engaged in the business of mineral exploration and the acquisition of mineral property assets. Its objective is to locate and develop economic precious and base metal properties of merit and to conduct additional exploration drilling and studies on its projects across North America. Athena's Laird Lake project is situated in the Red Lake gold district of Ontario, covering more than 7,000 hectares along more than 10 kilometres of the Balmer-Confederation assemblage contact, where recent surface sampling results returned up to 373 grams per tonne Au. This underexplored area is road-accessible, located about 10 km west of West Red Lake Gold's Madsen mine and 34 km northwest of Kinross Gold's Great Bear project. Also in Northwestern Ontario is Athena's Forester project, a 4,900-hectare land package located less than 30 km southeast of Orla Mining's Musselwhite gold mine, with historical drill intercepts showing strong potential for both high-grade, narrow-vein and low-grade, bulk-tonnage gold mineralization. Athena also holds a 100-per-cent interest in its Oneman Lake Au-VMS (gold-volcanogenic massive sulphide) project, located approximately 60 km north of Kenora, Ont. Meanwhile, its Excelsior Springs project is located in the prolific Walker Lane trend in Nevada, where it is currently under an earn-in option with Mammoth Minerals Ltd. (formerly Firetail Resources Ltd.). The Excelsior Springs project spans more than 2,500 hectares and includes at least three historic mines.

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