Gabby Thomas and Brittany Brown Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The CW continues to expand on its commitment to air live sports.

This time, the network is adding the upstart track and field circuit Grand Slam Track, founded by Olympic gold medalist Michael Johnson. Grand Slam Track is slated to hold four events in its inaugural season, beginning April 4 in Kingston, Jamaica.

The circuit’s media rights deal also includes a streaming component with NBC’s Peacock. Competition will take place over three days — Friday to Sunday — for each event, with Peacock streaming exclusive coverage of Day 1 on Fridays, then simulcasting The CW’s weekend coverage.

No financial details for the deal were released.

“We’re delighted to finally be able to announce this incredibly exciting broadcast and streaming partnership to all our fans in the United States,” Johnson, who serves as commissioner of the league, said in a press release. “I’d like to personally thank both our great friends and partners at The CW and NBC Sports for putting together this agreement, which will help us continue to revolutionize the sport of track. We were determined to make sure that Grand Slam Track would be seen by millions of fans across the country, and we’re delighted to be delivering on that promise.”

Grand Slam Track has signed a roster of 48 athletes, including notable track stars like multiple-time Olympic Gold medalists Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Gabby Thomas. Notably, the prize pools for Grand Slam events are much higher than the current preeminent track and field circuit, Diamond League.

The deal marks another expansion into live sports for the Nexstar-owned CW. The network currently holds media rights agreements with the ACC, Pac-12, WWE NXT, the NASCAR Xfinity Series, and Inside the NFL.

“We are thrilled to welcome Olympic Champion Michael Johnson and the inaugural season of Grand Slam Track to the CW Sports family,” Brad Schwartz, President, The CW Network said in a release. “Michael and his team have assembled an impressive roster of the top athletes from around the world for intense head-to-head competitions. We look forward to introducing Grand Slam Track to our broadcast audience and believe it is an exciting addition to our growing roster of sports on The CW.”

Grand Slam Track is precisely the type of sports property that networks like The CW should be targeting. The rights fee (if there is one) is presumably inexpensive, yet track and field has a dedicated audience that will find competitions wherever they are being aired.

And given the stature of the athletes Grand Slam has attracted, it shouldn’t be an issue to get fans tuned into The CW for its inaugural season.

About Drew Lerner

Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.