Olympic gold medalist Michael Johnson is in the process of creating a new athletics league, with aspirations of enhancing visibility and financial opportunities for athletes in a field that often finds it hard to capture public interest outside of the Olympics.
Johnson is collaborating with the Winners Alliance, an entity renowned as the commercial branch of the Professional Tennis Players Association, which has been operational for five years. Their goal is to establish a league that prioritizes fans and opens up new commercial prospects for the world’s elite track and field athletes.
Currently serving as a commentator for the BBC in the UK, Johnson is targeting next year for the league’s debut. He has openly criticized the current management of the sport and believes that a commercial endeavor, such as the one he is initiating, could better serve to elevate track athletics. World Athletics, the global body governing the sport, oversees the Diamond League and the majority of significant international competitions.
In a discussion with Sportico, Johnson expressed his deep affection for track and field, attributing his success to the sport. He voiced his dismay over the sport’s inability to consistently deliver memorable moments to audiences in the years following his retirement, with the notable exception of the Olympic Games.
