Grand Slam Track athletes voted unanimously to approve a bankruptcy plan by the league that would pay them the bulk of $7 million they are owed in prize money and fees.
In a filing in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware on Tuesday, a ballot to accept the proposal passed 123-0, according to the declaration, which would mean a 70 percent payout for the league’s talent as Michael Johnson’s venture takes its next steps toward a possible reorganization.
The plan will be reviewed in a hearing on Thursday for final approval.
This is the league’s second attempt at finding a solution to settle with more than 350 creditors.
Under the new plan, vendors would receive around 15 percent of $13 million in owed debts. Grand Slam Track’s original proposal from February offered vendors just 1.5 percent while athletes would have been paid 85 percent.
Representatives for the unsecured creditors rejected the first plan in March and viewed it as a move to rebuild trust among the athletes and salvage the league while they would receive what was left of any payout.
Meanwhile, many of the league’s biggest stars are among those who to accepted latest plan, with Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Yared Nuguse, Josh Kerr, Cole Hocker, Anna Hall, Agnes Ngetich, Grant Fisher, Nikki Hiltz and Jessica Hull listed in Tuesday’s filing. The declaration also noted that 16 athletes chose to be re-classified as unsecured creditors.
But even with the vote from the athletes, the league proposal will need to be approved by the bankruptcy court and a general bar date for all creditors to file a claim is April 24.
Grand Slam Track filed for bankruptcy last December after months of speculation over its finances after the league canceled the last of its four meets that was scheduled for June. Johnson said that an investor backing away from the venture caused significant hardship and court filings later revealed that the league struggled to pay its athletes and vendors after its first event in Kingston, Jamaica last April.
In late January, bankruptcy disclosures revealed detailed creditor list and showed that the league had nearly $41 million in debts, which was $10 million more than previously noted in its Chapter 11 petition.
