“The rich get richer!” - Michael Johnson on Taylor Swift popularizing track and field
Legendary sprinter Michael Johnson recently expressed his views on Taylor Swift popularizing track and field. The 56-year-old discussed in an interview about the music sensation talking about jogging and running ahead of the Eras Tour. Johnson believes that it is the ‘Taylor Swift affect’ that encouraged people to get interested in the sport.
Bad Blood singer Taylor Swift performed in 66 shows in the past eight months during her history-making ERAS Tour. Not only did she sing but she also aced the choreography for every show just to keep her audience entertained. In her latest interview with Time Magazine, Swift revealed that she began getting in shape for the Eras Tour six months before it kickstarted.
She shared that she ran on the treadmill every day while singing the list of songs for her tour. Swift added:
“Fast for fast songs, and a jog or a fast walk for slow songs.”
Her training regime also included specialized strength, conditioning, and weights program. She also took three months of dance lessons.
Sharing her athletic training regime, Michael Johnson wrote on his X (formerly known as Twitter) post:
“The Taylor Swift affect!
NFL: Player starts dating her, she attends games, viewership soars.
Track: She mentions running to train for shows, track geeks start geeking, that’s it."
Michael Johnson praises Noah Lyles, Sha’Carri Richardson, and Sydney McLaughlin Levrone for popularizing track and field
Recently, Michael Johnson recognized the contribution of track and field athletes like Noah Lyles, Sha’Carri Richardson, and Sydney McLaughlin Levrone in popularizing the sport.
He wrote on his X (formerly known as Twitter) account:
"I cannot recall a time when more track athletes successfully transcended the sport into US mainstream media coverage. Noah, Sha’Carri, and Sydney have all succeeded in unique and different ways."
In the last few years, Noah Lyles impressed the world with his dominance as a 200m runner. In fact, he currently holds the title of the third-fastest 200m runner in the world with his timing of 19.31s at the 2022 World Athletics Championships. Lyles constantly makes headlines for explaining how grand track and field is.
Sha’Carri Richardson, on the other hand, is famous for her unfiltered opinions and unique track presence. She made her stunning comeback at the World Championships by winning two gold medals in the 100m and 4x100m relay races. Richardson also won a bronze medal in the 200m race.
Michael Johnson also mentioned Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone who is currently the world record holder in 400m hurdles. Her timing on 50.68s has remained unbeatable since 2022.