Athletics world watching as Grand Slam Track prepares for launch

KINGSTON – What is being billed as a “revolution” for the sport of athletics gets under way in Kingston on April 4 with the opening meeting of United States sprinting legend Michael Johnson’s ambitious Grand Slam Track series.

Four-time Olympic gold medallist Johnson believes the four-event circuit represents a landmark moment for athletics, a bold new attempt to reinvigorate interest in the sport after years of decline.

Johnson, 57, says the format of his new circuit – which promises to create more head-to-head races between the world’s best track athletes – represents a winning formula that will bring eyeballs back to the sport outside the pinnacle of Olympic competition.

“People love racing. People want to see the best of the best. And at the core of Grand Slam Track is the best of the best athletes, only the fastest, competing head-to-head against one another four times a year,” Johnson said of his new circuit in 2024.

Fittingly, the action gets under way in Jamaica, long-regarded as the spiritual home of sprinting, before moving to meetings in Miami (May 2 to 4),Philadelphia (May 30 to June 1) and Los Angeles (June 27 to 29).

Uniquely, Grand Slam Track has 48 athletes under contract who will be present at all four competitions, with 48 “challengers” joining the field at each event.

The financial stakes for participating athletes are attractive, with prize money ranging from US$100,000 (S$134,000) for the winner of each group to US$10,000 for runner-up.

This week’s opening leg in Kingston will feature some 32 medallists from the Paris Olympics, including American women’s 400m hurdles star Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Olympic 200m champion Gabby Thomas.

But, in a significant blow to Johnson’s hopes of attracting the “best of the best” in their respective events, neither of the reigning Olympic 100m champions