Grand Slam Track founder Michael Johnson has spoken out after failing to pay athletes and said the event would not go ahead in 2026 unless a solution was found.
The league, which is in its inaugural season, owes competitors millions of dollars in appearance fees and prize money, and in June the fourth and final meet on the calendar, scheduled for Los Angeles, was cancelled. Johnson’s deal with host UCLA had become financially unviable, with estimated losses of more than $2m had the event gone ahead.
In a statement on Friday, Johnson said the company was “struggling with our ability to compensate” athletes due to not receiving promised funding.
“It is incredibly difficult to live with the reality that you’ve built something bigger than yourself while simultaneously feeling like you’ve let down the very people you set out to help. However, I have to own that,” the former Olympic champion said.
“And yes, the cruellest paradox in all of this is we promised that athletes would be fairly and quickly compensated. Yet, here we are struggling with our ability to compensate them.
“We were devastated when we learned we would not receive the funding committed to us. We worked tirelessly alongside our investors and board to find a quick solution to the problem. Up until and even after the LA postponement, we were getting positive signs that a solution was close.”
Before the opening event in Kingston, Jamaica, Johnson’s co-founder Steve Gera told The Independent that they were “maniacally focused on having the youngest fanbase of any sports league in the world in the next five years”.
The star-studded list of athletes – which included US stars Kenny Bednarek, Gabrielle Thomas and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone as well as British names including Josh Kerr and Dina Asher-Smith – competed in two linked events, such as 100m and 200m sprints, with results combined to calculate the winners in each category. Prize money for winners stood at $100,000, with $50,000 for runners-up and $10,000 for eighth place.
The competition was billed as a much-needed shot in the arm for athletics, although the decision to include only track events and omit field disciplines was met with criticism. “I am going to save what I think I can save,” Johnson explained. “I think I can save track, I don’t think I can save track and field.”
But ticket sales have been slow and sponsorship and broadcast revenues have not met lofty expectations. The Times reports that organisers will save around £2.2m in prize money and travel expenses by cancelling the Los Angeles event.
Some of the action has played out in half-empty stadiums, although the third event in Philadelphia was more popular, with close to 30,000 tickets sold over two days after the action was compressed from the three days of events held in Kingston and Miami.
A disappointing crowd in Jamaica prompted organisers to review their locations for 2026, with a variety of other markets being considered, including European cities.
Johnson said Grand Slam was now working to put new systems in place with the aim to ensure this did not happen again in the future.
He added: “While I am no stranger to setbacks and overcoming obstacles, as an athlete, professionally and personally, this current situation of not being able to pay our athletes and partners has been one of the most difficult challenges I’ve ever experienced.
“The 2026 season will not happen until these obligations are met – and that is my number one priority.”
additional reporting by PA
