GOAT meets GOAT, that’s exactly what happened on May 31st at Michael Johnson’s new Grand Slam Track event in Philadelphia! Quincy Wilson,17, the young phenom everyone’s talking about, finally got to meet the legend Michael Johnson. Quincy, who made history at the 2024 Paris Olympics as the youngest American male athlete to win gold, helped Team USA win the 4×400-meter relay by running in the preliminary heats. Since then, he’s been breaking records left and right. Meanwhile, Michael Johnson, with four Olympic gold medals, literally paved the way for stars like Quincy to shine today. As the two crossed paths, that moment melted the hearts of fans everywhere. But was he competing?
Quincy didn’t compete at the Grand Slam Track event, but he was there cheering loudly for the Americans. What got people talking was when Quincy and Michael Johnson met at Franklin Field at the University of Pennsylvania.
They hugged, shook hands, and shared a real moment of respect and connection. Grand Slam Track even posted a photo with the caption, “Legend meets the future Quincy Wilson linked up with Michael Johnson in Philly.” It was clear that the torch was being passed, right there on the track. But there’s more to this story.
Earlier this year, Michael Johnson spoke out about the trend of super young athletes, sometimes as young as 13, jumping into professional track competitions before they’re fully proven. On X, in February 2025, he said, “I don’t do hot takes but this is probably as close as I’ll get to one. The pro track world’s inclusion of and obsession with fast high schoolers as young as 13 yrs old who haven’t proven themselves on the pro scene (Quincy has) diminishes the value of pro athletes.”
Quincy Wilson, still a high school senior at Bullis School in Maryland, fits right into this debate. He’s young but already proving he belongs on the biggest stages. That makes their meeting even more powerful, showing respect between generations while sparking important conversations about the sport’s future. Seeing Quincy Wilson and Michael Johnson together wasn’t just a photo-op; it totally blew up the track and field world on X, sending fans into a frenzy.
Fans can’t get enough of Quincy Wilson’s style, speed, and Grand Slam hype
One fan added, “Quincy is so little and adorable .” Quincy rocked a royal blue polo with crisp white details on the collar and sleeves, layered over a clean white undershirt. He paired that with light blue ripped jeans and white sneakers that popped with red and orange accents. Topping off the look were his black-rimmed glasses and a lanyard hanging around his neck, giving off that perfect mix of cool and casual.
One fan straight-up said, “Guarantee he gets 43.7 by the end of the season,” and another jumped in with, “This is dope on all levels .” At just 16 last year, he made history at the 2024 Paris Olympics as the youngest American male track and field athlete to win gold. He ran in the prelims of the 4×400 relay, and even though he didn’t run in the final, that was enough to snag the gold, and he became the youngest male Olympian to do that in any sport since 1952. Pretty wild, right?
But Quincy’s not stopping there. He’s been smashing world under-18 records in the 400m like it’s nothing—clocking 44.66 seconds at the Olympic Trials prelims, then shaving that down to 44.59 in the semis, and blasting an insane 44.20 at the Holloway Pro Classic in Florida. That time makes him the second-fastest under-20 runner ever, right behind Steve Lewis’s legendary 43.87 from the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Fans are already dreaming big, talking about him hitting 43.7 seconds next.
One fan said, “Hear me out, get him as a challenger for LA,” and another echoed, “Challenger for LA .” It’s easy to see why 2025’s Grand Slam Track season, created by Olympic legend Michael Johnson, features four elite meets called “Slams,” running from April through June. It kicked off with the Kingston Slam, then Miami, followed by Philadelphia, and now all eyes are on the final showdown at the Los Angeles Slam coming up June 27–29 at UCLA’s Drake Stadium. Fans are buzzing that Quincy Wilson could very well be joining as a challenger in LA, let’s see if he turns that chance into future gold!
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