LOS ANGELES -- Change is-a-coming in track and field, and on Tuesday that change was given a name: Grand Slam Track. 

It’s a new track league announced and founded by Olympic gold medalist Michael Johnson which is set to begin sometime in April next year, with as much as $12.6 million set to be handed out over its debut year across four Grand Slam events. 

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, the world record-holder and Olympic champion in the 400 meter hurdles, was announced as its first signing. The New Jersey native and Los Angeles resident is set to receive a guaranteed base compensation and will be the league's first signed “Racer.” 

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A total of 96 athletes will compete in each Slam, with 48 signed athletes — split between men and women — competing against 48 challengers. Each signed racer, Johnson said, will receive a guaranteed base compensation for being part of the league. 

The prize pool for winning events will be significant, with athletes having access to as much as $100,000 for first-place finishes. The only requirement, he said, is that all signed racers must race across its four events to have access to that prize-money. A total of about $3 million will be handed out at each Slam. 

The league, which landed more than $30 million in investment from The Winners Circle, a sports licensing and sponsorship group, will be headquartered in Los Angeles, which will also be one of the host sites. 

One more American city and two more international sites are yet to be determined. But the three others, Johnson said Tuesday, will be appointed in conjunction with host cities. 

The key difference in the market here? There will be no field events. Johnson argued on Tuesday that the sport struggles to promote various events spread across its spectrum during broadcast windows, so Grand Slam Track will ultimately consolidate to six disciplines: short sprints, long sprints, short hurdles, long hurdles, short distance and long distance. 

Olympic events not making the cut on the track include the 3,000 meter steeplechase and the 10,000 meter, along with the race walk and the multis events. Field events will not be a part of this league either.  

Recently, World Athletics named a new competition opposite of its Olympic and World Championship cycles, titling it the Ultimate Championships. The Diamond League, which FloSports picked up the broadcast rights to stream 2025, also has a 15-meet schedule annually. 

The name and logo for Grand Slam Track was unveiled as ESPN SportsCenter anchor John Anderson moderated a panel discussion. One of Johnson’s core selling points was the league’s goal in creating and emboldening “rivals,” a thought which plagues the sport wherein the top athletes do not face their top counterparts often. 

Johnson said he thinks Grand Slam Track will find its audience. He argued that the league, which will operate outside the list of core events for USATF and World Athletics, will offer its own platform and opportunity. 

"I'm really excited today to announce Grand Slam Track,” Johnson said. “I've been working on this for quite sometime now and my team has been working on it for about a year to develop the concept," Johnson said. "This is the premier league of track, premier series of races for track. It's the best of the best racers, only the fastest, most popular track athletes competed against each other, four times a year, as professionals, compensated as professionals, with unprecedented prize money. This is something that's never been done before in the sport ...it's like what you see in professional sports, but what we have lacked for so long in track."

McLaughlin-Levrone, who was unable to race at the World Championships last year due to injury but won the U.S. Outdoor title in the open 400m, has raced six times across the 2024 season and is ramping up for the U.S. Olympic Trials, where she will return to the 400 meter hurdles and look to defend her Olympic title in Paris. Her signing is a significant step for a league hoping to attract the sport's top athletes. 

"It's an amazing opportunity, I'm grateful to be a part of it and to be the first athlete," McLaughlin-Levrone said. "I feel this is going to be a huge step forward for track to grow the visibility, as well as the compensation for athletes, as well as giving fans what they want."

There will be six groups of races per gender with four GST Racers and Challengers in each group. Each athlete will compete twice in their events over a given Slam. 

Racers will be contractually committed to starting in all four slam events. 

Those in the Challenger category will be signed to individual slam events based on recent performances. There is potential for a Challenger competitor to be signed to the GST Racer roster the following season.

"There are a number of reasons why I love this," said Carl Lewis, who is the current head track and field coach at the University of Houston and was at the panel discussion. "With the Grand Slam, first you have set dates and places so you can plan for them. Second you have too many people competing and this league will only bring in the best."

Johnson did not announce a broadcast deal for his four-meet league, though said he is currently in talks with networks primarily in the U.S. 

In February, Johnson announced his initial plans to build this new league in partnership with Winners Alliance, a 2-year-old company which aims to create “scalable, athlete-first commercial opportunities that empower world-class athletes to achieve their world-class value.” 

Bill Ackman, the Portfolio Manager and CEO of the Pershing Square — which holds a $11.4 billion market cap — is a board member of Winners Alliance, while Ahmad Nassar, a former NFL Inc. president, is its CEO. 

* Ryan Blystone contributed to this report

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