Zharnel Hughes joins Michael Johnson’s Grand Slam

British sprinter Zharnel Hughes will compete in Michael Johnson’s inaugural Grand Slam season in 2025. The event has a prize pool of 12.6 million USD (9.9 million GBP) and was launched by American sprinting legend Johnson in June with the aim of bringing together the world’s best athletes.

There will be 48 contracted athletes taking part, but there will also be 48 challengers named at a later date.

Zharnel Hughes is the British men’s record holder in both the 100m and 200m and was part of Great Britain’s 4x100m relay that won bronze medals at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

The 29-year-old also won individual bronze in the 100m at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest. The Briton was one of the final five contracted athletes to be named on Thursday, along with American sprinter Brittany Brown, who won Olympic bronze in the women’s 200m.

In November, sprinter Daryll Neita became the first British woman to join the league, which is split into four events and starts in April 2025.

Three of the four 2025 events will be hosted in the US cities of Los Angeles, Miami and Philadelphia, while Kingston, Jamaica, will also host an event.

I am driven by the desire to be the best, to inspire others and to leave a lasting legacy. The future of our sport is bright and with the global popularity of track and field, I think now is the right time to join the Grand Slam of athletics”, said Zharnel Hughes.