Dina Asher-Smith backed to shine in 400m at the Grand Slam Track as British star prepares for new challenge

Michael Johnson has backed Dina Asher-Smith to go a prima of the 400 metres arsenic she prepares to measurement up successful region astatine Grand Slam Track.

The British sprinter has chosen to contention successful the agelong sprints radical (200m and 400m) implicit her much earthy class of abbreviated sprints (100m and 200m) successful the inaugural gathering of the caller athletics league successful Kingston, Jamaica.

And Johnson, the two-time Olympic and four-time satellite 400m champion, believes Asher-Smith has what it takes to beryllium a occurrence implicit 1 thigh of the track.

‘I've ever thought that Dina could beryllium a truly bully 400 runner,’ admitted Grand Slam Track laminitis Johnson up of the archetypal nighttime of his revolutionary bid connected Friday.

‘We cognize she's a truly bully 200 runner and I cognize that Dina has ever truly wanted to beryllium a 100, 200 sprinter, and the 100m has benignant of fto her down implicit the years.

‘But I've ever felt that that 400 is astir apt connected the cards for Dina, truthful it's breathtaking to spot she's successful that group. You privation to spot Dina tally a 400.’

Asher-Smith, who won the satellite 200m rubric successful 2019, has seldom tally 400m and her outdoor idiosyncratic champion is lone 53.49sec from 11 years ago. That is much than 5 seconds slower than the clip Dominican Marileidy Paulino ran to triumph past summer’s Olympics.

However, Asher-Smith has been moving hard connected her 400m implicit the wintertime and clocked a divided of 51.2sec astatine the Texas Relays past month, having besides ran 52.31sec indoors successful February.

In her class successful Jamaica, the 29-year-old volition beryllium up against Paulino and Olympic 400m metallic medallist Salwa Eid Naser.

The victor of the radical volition beryllium the jock who has the champion combined results – converted into points - from the 200m and 400m races.

‘Dina is going to people precocious points successful the 200 and past you person got to look to execute successful the 400m,’ said Johnson.

‘I don't deliberation she tin interaction the Olympic golden and metallic medallist successful the 400, but tin she bushed a fewer radical and extremity up scoring capable points to win.’

Asher-Smith is 1 of 7 Brits competing successful Jamaica, on with Josh Kerr, Zharnel Hughes, Matthew Hudson-Smith, Daryll Neita, Neil Gourley and Melissa Courtney-Bryant.

They each person a changeable of banking a grounds $100,000 for winning their category, with $50,000 going to the runner-up and adjacent eighth spot receiving $10,000.

The immense prize cookware and lucrative contracts and quality fees person raised the question of whether Johnson is encouraging athletes to prioritise wealth implicit medals.

But Johnson responded: ‘There aren’t a batch of those medals retired there. Athletes dedicate their lives to this athletics and they get 1 accidental each 4 years oregon each 2 years to triumph a medal.

‘If you win, great, it’s amazing. You tin person a large beingness and you consciousness similar it is worthy it. But astir of the athletes, adjacent the fastest ones successful the world, aren’t going to triumph 1 of those medals.

‘Now they are regretting their decision, questioning whether I should person done this due to the fact that I person dedicated my beingness to this, and I americium struggling financially.

‘You are looking astatine your counterparts successful different sports and thinking, “OK, truthful this feline hasn’t won anything, but is simply a immense personage making each of this money, wherefore cannot this beryllium the concern successful my sport?”.

‘That is what I privation for these athletes and that is what we are doing astatine Grand Slam Track.’

The three-day Kingston gathering is the archetypal of 4 events betwixt present and the extremity of June and it volition beryllium broadcast successful the UK connected TNT Sports, with BBC favourite Steve Cram starring the commentary.

‘I haven’t felt similar this since July 1996,’ added Johnson, who famously won the 200 metres and 400m treble astatine the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

‘It’s the aforesaid nerves that I felt a spot erstwhile I was competing, wherever you cognize that you are the best, but you person to spell retired determination and beryllium it. It’s going to beryllium fun, but it’s a tense benignant of amusive and it’s excitement.

‘When I went into 1996, I knew that that was an astonishing accidental and I didn’t privation to squander it.

‘I was much focused connected wanting to spell retired determination and bash what I said I was going to bash - and it’s the aforesaid happening with this.

‘I americium looking guardant to seeing the races present and having the fans engaged.’

Every circular of the Grand Slam Track is unrecorded connected TNT Sports and discovery+. Round 1 starts connected Friday 4 April astatine 11.30pm connected TNT Sports 3.