In its three days, the Grand Slam Track event has shown some of the most thrilling races in a fresh format. The elite and not-so-elite athletes showed up at Kingston National Stadium, where the statues of Usain Bolt, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Asafa Powell, Arthur Wint, and many more Jamaican athletes were unveiled. With the Kingston Slam over, Michael Johnson has hinted at something new for the Miami race.
The first two days witnessed Gabby Thomas clinched the women’s 400m title, becoming the first Grand Slam champion. Kenny Bednarek continued his dominant run by capturing the 100m and 200m races in the short sprint group. Sydney Mclaughlin clenched their titles as well. All in all, an eventful day for the sprinters. Thus, fresh changes could come in soon for the event.
Micahel Johnson addressed the fact question of how many times his phone rang with challengers trying to book a slot. The man said, “So thankfully it’s not my phone that rings for that. It’s Kyle Merber, our director of racing, and yes, his phone has been ringing quite a bit. People want in, and that’s exactly what we want. And that’s why we have challenges, right? But the opportunity for people to come in. So you’ll see different challenges.”
He continued, “In Miami, you’ll see some different challenges than in Philadelphia and L.A. But you’ll see some of those same challenges here. Those that ran fast and, like, you know, sort of earned their spot, earned their lane, they want to keep it. And they ran faster than they’ll ever keep it.”
The Kingston stamp marked just the start of the league. Attracting more athletes to join can help support Michael Johnson’s goal of increasing the number of athletes in the league. Moreover, the Grand Slam commissioner has hinted that new athletes would appear for the Miami Slam. Who would you wish to show up? Noah Lyles might get added to the mix. Johnson spoke well in the interview posted by Citius Mag.
When asked about Noah joining the league, Johnson said it’s not in their hands. He said, “Look, just listen to what Kenny said Kenny gave Kenny gave everybody who’s not here an invitation. You need either take the invitation to come get the smoke or not. It’s up to you.”
Though Noah and Michael Johnson have a long history, the latter has not disapproved of him coming to GST. In the first week of May, the league will head to Miami. Before that, what went down in the Kingston Slam?
The Grand Slam Track event starts with a bang!
The Kingston Slam had a total of 96 athletes (48 runners and 48 challenges) running in the national stadium. Each group involved two races, and points were awarded based on finishing positions — with top placers earning prize money up to $100,000 when you divide the $12.6 million total for each event.
It aims to give athletes more regular, high-stakes competition outside the traditional Olympic cycle. This total sum almost added up to three million in prize money.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone overcame the Olympic rematch to claim the top sport in women’s long hurdles on Day 3. Grant Fisher took the slam in the men’s long-distance runners, and other notable winners included American Kenny Bednarek and Melissa Jefferson.
They claimed the men’s and women’s titles, respectively, in the short sprints. French Sasha Zhoya with the second position in 100mH and then winning the 100m, becoming the grand slam champion.
Jamaican challenger Danielle Williams was also victorious. Now, some of these would join the ones that have been ringing the phone to join the league in Miami. The league will go to the city of beaches on May 2nd. What do you think of the Grand Slam Track as of now?
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