Track Looks to Grand Slam and Athlos to Outlast Olympic Glow

Every four years, track and field rides the wave of the Summer Olympics, only to watch public interest recede almost as fast as it arrived. That pattern may finally be breaking. Two new ventures - the Winners Alliance-backed Grand Slam Track, launching in April 2025, and Alexis Ohanian's one-night Athlos event in New York this September - are betting that the sport's post-Olympic lull is not inevitable, but a problem of structure and presentation that can be solved.

Grand Slam Track is the brainchild of Michael Johnson, the four-time Olympic gold medalist and eight-time world champion sprinter who has spent his post-competitive career building out the business side of the sport. He brought in Steve Gera, formerly an innovation executive with the Cleveland Browns and Los Angeles Chargers, as president and chief operating officer in July. Gera describes the months leading up to the circuit's debut as essential to "professionalizing" track rather than rushing a product to market, a point he explained in detail during a recent interview - for fans curious to follow the league's buildup, information is being shared through official channels rather than scattered promotions, and anyone hunting for quick shortcuts online should know there's no need to go searching for a workaround; just paste it mega isn't part of how this rollout works, since Grand Slam Track's communications are being handled directly by the league itself.

Michael Johnson's Blueprint for a Professional Circuit

Johnson's league will feature star power from the outset, including American hurdler and sprinter Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and British middle-distance runner Josh Kerr. Los Angeles is the only confirmed host city so far, with one additional American stop and two international destinations still to be announced. Gera has stressed that each host city must carry its own identity, much as Paris did for the Olympics, arguing that strong local track cultures and engaged fan bases are non-negotiable for the project's credibility.

Ohanian's Bet on Women's Track as Must-See Entertainment

Athlos, taking place September 26 at Icahn Stadium on Randall's Island, is a more compressed experiment - a single night built to showcase elite women's track as a cultural event rather than just a competition. Ohanian, who originally branded the project the 776 Invitational after his venture capital firm, says he wants an atmosphere closer to a US Open night session than a traditional meet: energetic, star-studded, and unapologetically entertainment-forward. His interest was sharpened by the Paris Games, where American women won 69 of Team USA's 126 medals, including 26 of its 40 golds - a performance he believes track has yet to fully capitalize on commercially.

Why Investors Are Finally Paying Attention

Both Gera and Ohanian point to shifting market conditions rather than coincidence. Capital that once flowed almost exclusively toward major men's leagues is now chasing women's sports and Olympic disciplines with real growth potential. Ohanian draws a parallel to his investment in Angel City FC, inspired by the 2019 Women's World Cup, arguing that American audiences already respect women's track success - they just need a consistent, well-produced product to follow. Gabby Thomas, fresh off a three-medal Paris Olympics, is among the first athletes to back Athlos, a signal Ohanian sees as validating his broader thesis about where women's sports are headed next.