Everyone knows Michael Johnson, one of many biggest athletes within the historical past of observe and discipline and sports activities typically.
Simply as a reminder, he gained 4 Olympic gold medals (within the 200m, 400m and 4x400m) and eight World Championships gold medals (in the identical disciplines).
He set a 200m World Document in 1996 that might take Usain Bolt 14 years to interrupt. Wayde van Niekerk took nearly 17 years to interrupt Johnson’s 200m document.
Michael has been concerned with observe and discipline a very long time since he stopped being a aggressive athlete. Since 2001 he’s a pundit for the BBC, the place he covers a wide range of observe and discipline occasions, together with the Olympics.
Pre-announcing a brand new observe league
Again in February, Michael Johnson introduced this on his social media:
BIG issues coming to skilled observe & discipline!!! https://t.co/NVTfI6tVfw pic.twitter.com/yZjVnBjyxM
— Michael Johnson (@MJGold) February 27, 2024
“Simply wished to let you realize about mynew observe enterprise. I teamed up with some nice companions and collectively we’re making the largest funding ever into skilled observe and discipline, to construct knowledgeable, actually fans-focused league that can unlock probably the most worth for the most effective observe and discipline athletes on this planet.”
He then linked to an article on Sportico with extra particulars.
The promise
This February announcement got here with some details about the brand new league, however not every little thing. These had been the details:
- Observe and Discipline has a really giant following, however solely throughout occasions such because the Olympics and the World Championships;
- Followers battle to comply with their favourite athletes due to irregular TV protection;
- Athletes face monetary difficulties to maintain their careers;
- Winners Alliance is the companion on this enterprise, already making the most important funding in observe and discipline historical past (in April we realized this determine to be $30M);
- They are going to create a brand new league in 2025;
- The league could have a format that’s TV and fan pleasant;
- It would give attention to the athletes, attempting to raise their standing globally;
- It would have good prizes for the winners.
Within the meantime
Within the meantime, Johnson has used his social media to highlights among the points the athletes (and observe and discipline as a sport) are going through within the present scenario.
He’s additionally been sharing messages from different protagonists of the sports activities who are also anxious for the state of observe and discipline.
There’s this interview with Usain Bolt, the place he says “observe and discipline wants the eye as a result of I feel our sport goes beneath the radar.”
“Observe and discipline wants the eye as a result of I feel our sport goes beneath the radar.”
An interview with @usainbolt in Jamaica 🇯🇲
💬 Why observe and discipline must evolve and there must be a change of surroundings
⚡️ Praises @LylesNoah on attempting to do various things and recommendation… pic.twitter.com/nhFt3aLzh9
— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) March 22, 2024
Or when he retweeted Noah Lyles, asking “I haven’t seen one industrial for the Observe & Discipline Olympic trials. Is it simply me?”.
I haven’t see one industrial for the T&F Olympic trials. Is that simply me?
— Noah Lyles, OLY (@LylesNoah) March 29, 2024
One other factor that occurred on this time, is World Athletics declaring, in April, that they’ll provide $50k per gold medal gained in Paris, and it’s planning to increase prize cash to silver and bronze beginning on the LA 2028 sport.
Lastly, enter the Grand Slam Observe
Michael Johnson has lastly revealed the main points of the brand new league – referred to as Grand Slam Observe – this week.
That is the way it will work.
- The league could have 4 meets, referred to as “Slams”.
- 2 Slams will probably be within the US, 2 elsewhere.
- There will probably be 96 athletes concerned in every Slam.
- Grand Slam Observe (GST) will contract 48 athletes as “core racers”.
- The Core Racers will obtain an annual base compensation from the League and clearly will probably be competing for prize cash.
- The opposite 48 athletes will probably be chosen occasion by occasion primarily based on latest efficiency and attention-grabbing matchups. They’re referred to as “Challengers”.
- Challengers will obtain an look price for every Slam they take part in, plus are eligible to win the total prize cash.
What occasions will probably be within the Grand Slam Observe?
Let’s now take a look at the occasion classes:
- Brief sprints – 100m / 200m
- Brief hurdles – 100m hurdles (F) or 110m hurdles (M) / 100 meters
- Lengthy sprints – 200m / 400m
- Lengthy hurdles – 400m hurdles / 400m
- Brief distance – 800m / 1500m
- Lengthy distance – 3000m/5000m
As you discover, there are not any discipline occasions (no leaping, no throwing). We’ll come again to this later.
Every athlete will compete (over 2 days) within the two races of their occasion class.
So in case you race the 100m, you additionally race the 200m. In case you race the 400 hurdles, you additionally run the 400 flat.
That is the half I’m not so positive about. However positively it’s an innovation.
The ultimate placement for the Slam would be the sum of the factors achieved in every of their two races. Factors are assigned as follows:
- First place – 10 factors
- Second place – 8 factors
- Third place – 6 factors
- Fourth place – 5 factors
- Fifth place – 4 factors
- Sixth place – 3 factors
- Seventh place – 2 factors
- Eighth place – 1 level
In case of a tie, the full time of the 2 races mixed counts, and (you guessed it) the quickest one wins.
What about prize cash?
The winner of every Slam class will earn $100,000. That’s actually an order of magnitude larger than what the Diamond League affords their winners: $10,000.
Every Slam is impartial and doesn’t carry over factors or occasions or placements to successive Slam occasions.
No discipline occasions in any respect
Michael Johnson has been requested about it, and his reasoning is obvious.
There must be one occasion at a time, with all the eye going to it. At the moment, discipline occasions happen similtaneously the observe occasions, and solely highlights or the very ultimate levels of a race are actually proven to viewers.
For the reason that Grand Slam Observe is supposed to be a 2:30 – 3 hour occasion, there isn’t a time to give attention to leaping and throwing.
This has the potential to be massive
Apart from the Olympics, World Championships and regional Championships (such because the European Championships that simply concluded final week), the largest observe and discipline stars compete every year within the Diamond League.
The problem with the Diamond League is that not each “champion” participates in all occasions. There’ll at all times be massive names collaborating, however very hardly ever there will probably be actual aggressive match-ups.
By contracting (doubtlessly) the 4 greatest athletes in every occasion class, followers know that every of the Slams could have 4 of the most effective competing in opposition to one another – in a contest for actual cash, the place outcomes rely. Plus 4 different elite athletes chosen for every occasion.
Grand Slam Observe continues to be in search of streaming or broadcasting companions. Or if they’ve discovered them already, they haven’t introduced it.
Every “day” of a Slam will probably be two and a half to 3 hours lengthy.
Different attention-grabbing issues
– No pacers or tempo lights. It’s in regards to the competitors, not the occasions.
– No bibs, no security pins!
– Racers could have their very own sponsored package – not their nationwide or their membership package. That is extraordinarily attention-grabbing for the sponsor.
Personally, as a large observe fan, I look ahead to these Slams. I imagine the important thing would be the potential to certainly enroll the athletes that folks wish to watch, for the rivalries that make this sport nice.
I’m unhappy to see no discipline occasion included – however I imagine if this enterprise is profitable, each for the athletes, the followers and the league, perhaps new Slams could be created or perhaps a league for then (Grand Slam Discipline? You’re welcome Michael Johnson).
Are you a observe fan? What do you consider the Grand Slam Observe?
