1 week ago
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WITH THE first staging of Grand Slam Track (GST) having taken place at the National Stadium over the weekend, several athletes who competed across the three days have expressed their appreciation for the competition’s cash prizes on offer.
GST, a new track league spearheaded by American Olympian Michael Johnson, had drawn the attention of several of the sport’s top names with its groundbreaking prize pool.
The league boasts a total prize pool of US$12.6 million across its season, with each individual Slam champion walking away with US$100,000 (JMD$15.7 million).
In fact, finishing eighth in the competition would see an athlete walking away with US$10,000 ($1.57 million).
Danielle Williams was the only Jamaican to win a Grand Slam title when she finished atop the standings in the women’s short hurdles race group.
Williams earned 20 points across her two races, which saw her walking away with the grand prize on offer.
“To be honest, I don’t really think about the money like that. I try to focus on the things that I can control, and that’s running my race. But it is a cool concept and it’s good to know that I get to walk away with so much money,” she said in a post-race interview.
“It’s definitely a great plus to us and we deserve it because we train as hard as any other athlete - probably even harder than every other sport - and it’s all for 12 seconds and you can’t get it back. So I’m definitely pleased with that.”
Another athlete who was pleased with their earnings was Trinidadian sprinter Jereem Richards, who placed third in the men’s long sprints race group.
His final placement saw him pocketing US$30,000 ($4.7 million) which he said was the most money he had ever earned for two races.
“This is the most amount of money I have ever made in a weekend. It’s a blessing and, with that kind of mindset, I cannot lose. Even when I lose, I can’t lose,” Richards said after his final race.
“I’m humble and happy with each and every experience even if I don’t achieve exactly what I want to because I still am grateful for the things that I’m blessed with.”
American sprint hurdler Eric Edwards also took to social media to express his satisfaction with his payday after placing sixth in the men’s short hurdles race group.
Edwards walked away with a cash prize of US$15,000 ($2.35 million) which he equated to two years of rent in a post on X (formerly called Twitter)
“Two years of rent in two days! Thank you Grand Slam Track,” the sprint hurdler wrote.
The second staging of the league will be held at the Ansin Sports Complex in Miami, and is set to run from May 2 to May 4.
The last two stages will be held in Philadelphia and in Los Angeles.
Jamaican Slam earners
Danielle Williams - $15.7 million
Roshawn Clarke - $7.8 million
Oblique Seville - $4.7 million
Ackera Nugent - $4.7 million
Andrenete Knight - $4.7 illion
Kemba Nelson - $3.9 million
Shiann Salmon - $3.1 million
Deandre Watkin - $3.1 million
Akeem Blake - $3.1 million
Malik-James King - $3.1 million
Stacey-Ann Williams - $2.3 million
Assinie Wilson - $1.9 million
English (US) ·