Has athletics run out of road – and can Sebastian Coe and a new ‘champions league’ save it?

Previous attempts to revive the ailing sport have failed, writes Ben Bloom. But as attention builds ahead of the summer’s Olympics, athletics knows it needs to innovate if it is to survive – will a new competition and prize money for gold medallists be enough to bring back the glory from a bygone era?

Sprint legend Usain Bolt invested in Athletics Australia’s Nitro Athletics event in 2017 but the venture lasted only one year (PA Archive)

Back in early 2019, approaching the 10th anniversary of the birth of the Diamond League, World Athletics president Seb Coe announced some controversial changes to athletics’ premier season-long competition.

The two-hour television window for each meeting would be cut to 90 minutes and the number of core disciplines accordingly reduced from 32 (16 for men and 16 for women) to 24 (12 for men and 12 for women). Out went the 200 metres, discus, triple jump and 3,000m steeplechase, while the longest flat distance contested was to be capped at 3,000m.

“Our objective is to create a faster-paced, more exciting global league that will be the showcase for our sport,” explained Coe, as athletics diehards – not to mention discus throwers, triple jumpers and steeplechasers – fumed. “The Diamond League is our shop window and we want to attract new fans with a fast, action-packed format.”