Michael Johnson breaks silence on the scandal that almost ruined him | Exclusive Interview

By The Telegraph

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Michael Johnson has broken his silence on the collapse of Grand Slam Track in an exclusive interview with The Telegraph. The four-time Olympic champion explains for the first time where the money went after the professional track and field league that was his brainchild sank into insolvency. It was his dream to revolutionise athletics, to implant it more deeply in public consciousness and stage a spectacle worthy of maximum exposure outside the four-yearly hoopla of the Olympics. And this vision finally came to fruition in April last year in Kingston, Jamaica, fuelled by a promise to assemble almost 100 of the sport’s top performers four times a year. The intention was to mirror the grand slam structure in tennis and golf – in pursuit of £9.7m in prize money in the first season alone. No expense was spared as Johnson paid for athletes to fly first class and even for their partners to travel. But while all looked serene on the surface, the financial underpinnings were precarious.

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