As the inauguration of Grand Slam Track approaches, Michael Johnson talks about why it thinks it can lead to changes that need to be able to grow.
The National Stadium of Kingston keeps some significant memories for Michael NS Johnson. It was during the gaylore college, that the person who will continue to become a lot of Olympic and world champion alcohol received his first taste of Ama Amayka. Traveling a race in a free place was actually the first time he ever left America.
“I ran twice in college (relay events), 1989 and 1990,” he recalls. “It simply came to our notice then. I had never seen that level of young talent. “
It is the famous Issa / Grace Kennedy Boys and “Champions”, which is peared by Raffers, but only five days after this year’s publication will begin to become a reality to the growing caribbean stars.
Quite more approved names will be displayed for the first of four matches. Others will follow Miami, Philadelphia, then to LA, which design the inauguration of Grand Slam Track, which plans to make changes to sports.
Michael Johnson (Grand Slam Track)
Where you have not followed the story, the Way of Grand Slam plans to do a little differently. Here is the concept. A total of 48 athletes or “race” have already been registered and it is conditioned to compete in one of four groups of four events, four “slidths”.
Each slag, each race should be part of two different subjects, such as the US star Sydney McLuke-Levon will compete for 400 m obstacles and 400 m, but also 800 m away.
At the top of that, the 48 “challenge” will be 48 “challenge”, whose identities will be different from slippage to salam. Everything is called to create a professional or more profitable, league, which sits on top of sports, places attention to competitions, not at times and attracts more attention.
According to Johnson, the biggest challenge. “It was always going to force the athletes to compete four times against their primary rivals.”
With 48 races, including the Olympic and World Champions (36 of them won medals in Paris) – that box is very good. After all planning, the spring approaches have now been engaged.
In order to get to this moment, everyone is not a simple cruise, in mind.
“You give the athletes what they always wanted, but you also ask you to change and expect it to be a little difficult for people,” says Johnson. “You must always have some resistance, but large, the athletes have fallen.”
Michael Johnson (Grand Slam Track)
Did he feel like that in his competitive days if he approached him?
“It would not be difficult for me,” he added. “I wanted this. I always realized how other professional sports work because when I competed as a sprayer, my best friends were NFL players, and I saw how they trained my sport. I have always been a big formula for one fan and saw how that sport works against our sport. I would understand trade.
“And then I liked to compete in big championships. If you enabled me to compete against the best, that’s what I wanted to do. All my posts came when there were high stakes, and I ran everything when I was competing against the best, so I wanted. For most of these athletes I think what they want.
“It’s one of the things they say” I want the tribes to mean something. I want to compete against my competitors and that’s what is best to get out of me. “
Up to one step, even before running, was written about Grand Slam Track, and it can be argued that it has already had an impact. For example, it was a coincidence that the diamond league prize basket has recently increased.
Josh Kerry (John Nepolita)
That money is still pale, compared to some other sports to earn the strength, so how Johnson sees that he can continue to grow.
“Of course, there are significant participation in the United States here,” he said. “It’s the number of participation in the United States for girls, and I think that it’s two number number for boys behind American football, so it’s definitely a force. We also have a very good college system.
“Our biggest problem has always been that sport has never had a real league that sits on top. So we will compare the track with the NBA or NFL or the Europa League football, but it is not comparison. Comparison: should Be European League Football, NFL, NBA, Formula One. These are all leagues. We don’t have a league. We just call our sport sports. We need a league that is unique to the best of the best athletes. “
He adds. “No one is talking about combat sports as something. It’s UFC. It’s the leader. We never had this in athletics. We have the Olympic Games, which is ours. It does not belong to us as a sport. We have our World Championships, but it’s not an exceptional league that takes place every year that is the best way to best athletes.
“It was one of the things I first started it, I felt the necessary sport to make it back to prosper. Grand Slam’s path is that league. “
Michael Johnson (Mark Shearman)
It was late last year when Johnson claimed: “I think I can save the path.” He has the most confidence in athletes who can make their part of their deal and excellence. His work, he says that the means to provide funds for those stories that should be said on a large scale and audience that wants to return more.
The Paris Olympics and the performances were about the perfect advertisement for Athletics, so how many potentials are 57-year-old children.
“We are talking about it all the time and think that the issue is because of the lack of something else, we have been looking for years for the next generation of talent to help make more attention to sports. I think it’s wrong to think about it, because if you think about it, the athletes are amazing at each Olympic Games. It’s not a lack of talent.
“We continue to search for athletes to help the sport to grow or” save “sports, but there have been no Olympic Games or World Championships in the last few years, which was not like.” It was not surprising. ”
Matt Hudson-Smith (Getty)
“So it’s not athletes. It is the lack of a structure to take those athletes and put them in a product that you can provide to the fans, which are enthusiastic every year, which shows these personalities every year.
“From my point of view, the talent has always been there, but this is the largest collection of dynamic personalities in sports, and they put together with their fans to be a sports athlete. But their lack of platform that stimulates it, and that’s what we try to be as a Grand Slam Track. “
The level of aspect and aspiration is too high, but this does not mean that all forms of realism near the door are parked. Johnson Johnson is not going to insist that all Athletics diseases will be treated in late June and his idea of ​​success, but it can be investors invested in $ 30 million.
SYDNEY MCLAUGHLIN-LEVRONE (GETTY)
“The fact that we have signed these 48 races, now placing them on the track and allowing them to succeed,” he said. “What we want, then place a good product that is fun and sports so that the fans are in the picture and engage them in a new way.
“And then, of course, the meter, which I constantly look, grows, the number of fans that come to the stadium and watch the growth of our television audience or otherwise.
“It simply came to our notice then. I am involved in many beginners and you have to be realistic about what you can expect in a year. Need to focus on growth and you have to be built so that you can grow. So we are structurally.
“This is when many sports fans and people are worried (about the project). They welcome the Grand Slam Track, but are worried about whether it can last, so they will use the methodology that makes sense to them. “You must have a full stadium.” You don’t have to have a complete stadium in a year. You have to grow over time.
“Either they’ll say” You must have all the athletes, and if you don’t have this athlete who is the most popular, you will fail. ” No, you don’t have to have that one athlete. Must have very good athletes.
“We know what is possible, and we know what is realistic, so I feel good for our opportunities based on our goals. And then we will quickly prepare for both. “
Michael Johnson (Laureus)
Whether that second year is expanding other parts of the world. There have been discussions with a number of cities, remains visible. The same goes for some of the number of athletes who have been obvious to their absence, such as Novel Lail and Jakob Ingebrigtsen, can make sure that they will be satisfied in the future.
Johnson’s sight, however, remains clear.
“It has always been my point of view, (about) Grand Slam Track can make immediate changes based on our business,” he said. “We change the form of athletes, fans can consume products and enjoy followed by professional level.
“There has always been my opinion that it is going to promote other changes that sport needs to have a lot of time, and that global athletics have repeatedly said they want to see.
“Given that I think we just start, I think we will see more changes in sports in a positive direction. Someone had to start that. I think the Way of Grand Slam can make this stimulus for that change, and we will certainly try to move forward with our examples and our league. I hope it will stimulate more changes. “
This interview first appeared in the February issue of AW Magazine, Which you can buy here?
