This thread was started about an emergency meeting being called by Michael Johnson with the contracted racers of Grand Slam Track today. Matt Lawton of the Times of London then reported on the emergency meeting being called here (story updated to reflect the LA meet has been cancelled)
And Front Office Sports was the first to report The Grand Slam Track LA meet has been cancelled. Story here.
My favorite thing about GST is that it "forced" 1500 guys to run the 800, and vice versa.
But overall, terrible.
That was good but I think over 3-4 meets doing a 800/1000/1500/mile would have been better. There wasn’t remotely enough stuff for a multi day meet. Go for something like triple crown energy where excitement build week to week.
I hope this isn't the end for GST and they can find a way to rework the format, locations, and financials to return next year.
The athletes not yet receiving payments however is a major concern which, if not addressed, is a death sentence for the league and really hurts T&F in general. Hopefully the cancellation of the LA meet is being used to salvage financing so atheletes still can be paid and GST can retool for next year.
you obviously didnt see Heat 1 of the Mens 1500 at NCAAs last night and the carnage a slow CHAMPIONSHIP race incurs
totally agree - none of them should have been allowed through to the next round. with a last lap of 50 seconds and everyone walking before it was really an embarrasment. I just don't understand why Liam, Colin or the Georgetown kid didn't just take the race out - .
I have seen a bunch of Michael Johnson interviews over the years and the guy is about as exciting to listen to as a ham sandwich (I challenge any of you to share a link to an entertaining Michael Johnson interview)
Working for him is probably a pain
Not surprised Grand Slam Track is dead in the water (who the hell uses a tennis term for a track event)
As a track fan, I will be sad that there will be one less track meet to watch this summer
Pretty good point buried in here. The name of this project probably implicates a number of protected trademarks. Violating those can be costly.
Lets hope. It’s a terrible product and is taking away from the DL. Track is what it is. It’s always going to be a niche sport. Stop trying to fix something that isn’t broken
Even GST appears to agree with me. Paid way too much money for something that only peaked interest out of curiosity. Format stunk
I have seen a bunch of Michael Johnson interviews over the years and the guy is about as exciting to listen to as a ham sandwich (I challenge any of you to share a link to an entertaining Michael Johnson interview)
Working for him is probably a pain
Not surprised Grand Slam Track is dead in the water (who the hell uses a tennis term for a track event)
As a track fan, I will be sad that there will be one less track meet to watch this summer
Pretty good point buried in here. The name of this project probably implicates a number of protected trademarks. Violating those can be costly.
I enjoyed watching GST. But as I sit here watching the Dream mile Olslo meet with the crowds they have....well. I still remember watching this meet in 1985.
The superiority complex of GST was ultimately the downfall. As someone who attended LA Grand Prix with MJ in attendance it was clear he was never in it to "save the sport", but simply himself and his favored athletes. Little fixes that could've helped: 1. They did nothing to appeal to regular average sports viewers. Track is one of the most inclusive sports for athletes, yet the most excluding in becoming a new fan. They were easy opportunities to partner with Nascar (which aired after Philly) or even Tennis to develop interest. Instead I only saw marketing in places that already appeal to track fans. 2. The audio/visual technical difficulties in the broadcast were terrible. I couldn't convince any family or friends to actually watch because of six minutes of unintended silence followed by two separate commentary groups(who really had nothing to say) at the same event. We didn't need all that and we certainly didn't need the awkward tension going on with Sanya Richards-Ross and whoever they sat next to her. I never knew I'd ever feel bad for Centro. 3. The multi-day set up was really hard to commit to in person or on television. It always should've been 2 hours and 2 days. Also 35 minutes of minutes horribly packaged bits and recaps before the race (dear god save the "I pooped my pants" and nasty little swipes the athletes took at each other for social media) and then 35 minutes of nothing but recaps after the race. Who wants to watch that? And I didn't need to see MJ make it about himself even more. No one under 35 doesn't even knows who he is. 4. The locations never made any sense to me (except Philly and LA). You're creating an American track league competitor and you put the first meet in Jamaica in a huge stadium in a country where you can't get it's top talent and many of its residents won't be able to afford a ticket? What? Then you go to Miramar (sorry I mean "Miami") and call it a success when the 2k-3k seats fill. A joke. Philly gave me hope, but it's clear things were already falling apart by then. Yes, people on here can be extremely negative, but if GST had some sense they'd read these threads and take some feedback or ideas rather than feel they are just better than all this. I hope my LA ticket refund happens ASAP, but watch I won't get it, just like the athletes who won't get paid.
You know what's crazy? That this damn message board has this story before any track and field journalist in the world. it doesn't happen in any other sport that the fans are often more informed than the journalists
That’s because the sport is a joke and barely any journalists cover it. …That said, all of you whiny ass babies who think a monopoly is good for the sport (or the athletes, or the fans) compared to an ecosystem with entrepreneurial attempts are clowns who have never and will never start anything.
I really don't understand why so many people are so negative about GST.
We got more meets than we would've otherwise and there were a lot of excellent races! Plus no field events to sit through.
800/1500 double was excellent and I'm here for it. I hope they're not done already
^^^^^
This. I'll never understand what makes track fans, or at least the ones on this board, the most cynical, complaining fans of any sport. People here find a way to hate everything that happens, and take glee in any failure. Weird.
Right. Keep complaining and hating we won't have anything.
On the primary sponsor of Penn Relays (well, maybe Toyota, but among running co's). They know the people and venue at Penn. Love to se it happen, Philly GST was outstanding and there were a LOT of people in the stands.
Hope this isn't the end - but it was obvious from the beginning the prize money was WAY too high to succeed as a business. As a comparison, average Major League Baseball payroll is right around $1 million per game, with an average of 28,000 in attendance PLUS A MASSIVE TV RIGHTS DEAL. With Philly as the model, GST was paying out $1.5 Million per day with maybe $200k in ticket sales, minimal sponsorship deals, and a TV deal where they probably gave the content away for free.
This ^^^^^^^ is the best post on here.
There was nothing really wrong with the product. Same is true of the Diamond League.
The problem was there was no business model.
People though I was a hater. While it's true I didn't like the LIV Golf vibes I was getting from it, my main thought all along was - how in the world is this ever going to make money?
The London DL sells like 50,000 tickets and somehow still loses money.
And I did kind of think last week when Rome was going on and some on this forum were saying the atmosphere sucked and it should be kicke doubt of the DL - "But that crowd in Rome is probably bigger than what they got in Philly." It's just that the Rome stadium seats like 60-70k.
I'm not sure about that point on the London DL. The loss was in 2023 and was due to a number of factors - lack of a title sponsor, poor event setup like lack of concessions for additional revenue. The London DL is now run by Athletics Ventures, a collaboration between UKA, London Marathon Events, and Great Run. The event was noticeably better run last year and I wouldn't be surprised if it's running a profit now that professionals from LME and GR are involved. Attendance will already be up this year to close to 60,000.
They should have pitched this league to ESPN/ Disney. Then put some of the bigger sports commentators on it. As cringey as it is get Stephen a Smith on the broadcast, get Shaq, get celebs that can comment on a 2 hour track broadcast. Noah lyles and Shacarri not being on board really kills track spectating for us american if the league doesn't return.
They should have pitched this league to ESPN/ Disney. Then put some of the bigger sports commentators on it. As cringey as it is get Stephen a Smith on the broadcast, get Shaq, get celebs that can comment on a 2 hour track broadcast. Noah lyles and Shacarri not being on board really kills track spectating for us american if the league doesn't return.
Spot on. If they had just hired Donald Trump instead of Steve Cram to do the in-race commentary, along with Shaq, and Stephen A. Smith, ratings would have been boners.