Grand Slam Track announces TV deal on CW network with streaming on Peacock

My thoughts: Outside of ESPN picking it up or NBC putting some of this on network, this is much better than just streaming it on youtube. Peacock/NBC is the home of the Olympics so there is the option for more down the road if this gets some traction.

I had been hearing some speculate it would be just streamed on youtube which isn't a great look as every successful league in the US has a TV/streaming partner.

I looked into going to the Miami meet since it is only about a 4 hour drive for me. The tickets are reasonable even for the VIP finish line seats (at least compared to an NFL playoff game).

That said, 3 days of track and field seems a little exhausting outside of an Olympics or World Championships, and I don’t think I can convince my wife to go 3 days in a row. I think I’ll stay home and watch it on Peacock. Thanks for the update.

I think we've seen this play before. Some one starts a league. It lasts 1 or 2 years. Then it folds up. The US is just not a good place for live meetings. Look at LAGP, NYGP, Eugene DL, WC Eugene, etc. People tried their best and got 1K to 3K fans to no avail. In contrast London DL, Silesia DL, Xiamen DL, Suzhou DL, Brussels DL, Rome DL gets 40,000-50,000 easy. Paris Charlety, Zurich, Rabat, Doha gets 20,000. Old venues Monaco, Stockholm, Oslo gets 10,000.

That's something the US can't match with the 1978 Stevens Sports Act hindering for-profit leagues from attracting the $Trillion Hollywood Streamers. Unit we cancel the 1978 Stevens Sports Act and enable the $Trillion Hollywood TV Streamers to buy our sport we will never make Juan Soto, Roki Sasaki, Luka Donic kinds of money.

Sorry that GST got dissed by the Networks. Had to settle for little indie slots. Better luck next time.

The graphic looks like a promo for a cheap reality show.

No. The real reason? US cities aside from maybe New York are a pain to get around and lack density. Basically, going out and doing anything is a chore--driving and parking. That's fine for big, one-off events with massive draw (NFL, concerts, etc.). It's not good for fringe events trying to grow. Also, people in the US don't go out as much to just "be out"--they stay at home with massive couches and TVs. Most of those other places you mentioned have lively street/city life, are very dense, cheap to get around, and so why not pop into a track meet on a random night and chill with friends for a reasonable cost. In short, the barrier is lower there than here. Friends can meet up at a stadium and watch.

Very good that it will be on Peacock and CW. That is a win for GST.

Hopefully the Replays will also be available on Peacock for those who miss the live broadcasts.

With NBC/Peacock losing (dropping?) the Diamond League, GST will help significantly bolster its track offerings.

Presume we will get Ato Bolden and Kara Goucher announcing?

This is fantastic. Glad i won't have to fire up the VPN for this one. Peacock is back baby!

What a shame. Both Ohanian and GST cant any love from the $T Streamers like Apple, Amazon, Netflix, NBC Universal, CBS Paramount, ABC Burbank, Sony Pictures, Microsoft, Google, etc. Only the puny off channels picked up.

Agreed. Also noteworthy: Noah Lyles said he was waiting to see where GST would be streamed/broadcast before deciding if he would participate. Hopefully this meets his standard. He reposted GST's announcement this morning, so perhaps that's a sign.

responding to some of these comments.

1) The three days is a huge ask for the in person fans. No one else in this country can get a decent crowd for a pro track meet for more 1 day outside of Prefontaine. Smaller venues in Miami and UCLA are a good idea so that it won't look small on TV.

Take a PGA tournament. I bet most fans don't go more than 1 day even if the tournament if 4.

I've said I thought huge 1 day meets would be the easiest route to go but maybe that isn't as financially sustainable as you have 4 days of TV vs 12.

But then again currently their not making $ from this TV setup. I personally would have tried 4 huge 1day meetings and then expanded if viable. But that knocks out the doubling which is a big part of this.

2) Wonder what it would have cost to buy time on NBC/ESPN.

3) Was thinking about it this weekend watching NBIGP. The lane fillers are so overpaid in this thing. But a lot of money will go to them. But I guess that happens in a lot of successful sports leagues.

4) A 30 minute recap show for European visitors might be a nice thing for someone to host. I should offer our services but instead will take credit for this idea someone else gave me. Track can be packaged very well in highlight fashion.

Now they can announced some of the people getting the biggest $ to run and drive ticket sales as they've only announced half the names.

World Athletics streams on YouTube, and it's better coverage than the US streaming partner (NBC). For the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, the US coverage didn't include the women's 500m or mile but the World Athletics coverage did. Also the commentators are much better than the US.

It really is a night and day difference. Watch the European stream for any track meet you can. The only reason to prefer the US stream is if you have a special interest in knowing about moms or farmers.

Peacock is great because it is worth having even when you aren't watching track and it is only like $5.99 a month.

Well, it looks like am watching all the GST meets!

i grabbed peacock for 19.99 for the year during black friday. i had cancelled it in september with the diamond league announcement, but 19.99 too good not to have it.

Right now it is going for 29.99 for a whole year. if you plan to watch, just pay for it now. then you'll have it for all of football season next year, and also prefontaine i think.

monthly price is up to 7.99. yearly is 79.99 when deal isn't offered.

yeah looks like a canva poster to me

I agree that it's good for US viewers this is on Peacock/CW rather than behind a more obscure/running-specific paywall, but what about viewers in other countries? Peacock is only available in the US (doesn't work internationally even with a VPN). So I really hope they also arrange some other way to stream it.

I have faith that Merber will make this special.