Grand Slam Track under question in 2026

There will be no Grand Slam in athletics in 2026 until the athletes who participated in the 2025 edition are paid. This was announced by the legendary Michael Johnson, who is the initiator of the new format in the sport.

“The current situation and the inability to pay the athletes and the partners is one of the most difficult challenges in life”, explained Michael Johnson. “The 2026 season will not take place until these obligations are met”, added he.

The competition was announced with fanfare in 2024 by the American sprint legend, with the aim of “getting athletics out of the dust” with a new format in which athletes had to compete for giant bonuses.

The Kingston Open in April, Miami in early May and Philadelphia in late May were held in small, half-empty stadiums, with the new Grand Slam deciding to cancel the final event in Los Angeles for “economic” reasons. After the 2025 season ended, many athletes warned that they were still waiting for their bonuses.

“The cruel paradox is that we promised that athletes would be paid quickly, and we are having a hard time doing that”, said Michael Johnson, who also revealed the loss of investors due to “changes in circumstances beyond our control”.

This season, the tournament brought together several stars, such as multiple Olympic champions Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Gabby Thomas, but was boycotted by other big names, such as Noah Lyles, Julien Alfred and Sha’Carri Richardson.