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The event was originally announced at a press conference last November when the organisers failed to specify a date, a venue, a TV tie in or a sponsor. Cynicism has surrounded the event since then, with many commentators insisting that the race would never take place.

Nevertheless, Eddie Cogan, the Toronto developer who has nailed the whole package down, insists there will be 45,000 people in the Skydome tomorrow with an audience of 300 million worldwide tuning into the event.

"It's guaranteed," says Cogan. "From an attendance point of view it will be a smash."

Cogan is a renowned local dealmaker who is currently involved in a $180 million development project down at Niagrara Falls.

Understatement isn't part of his armoury. "It's a piece of sports history. I think the last track event that stands up to this was Bannister versus Landy in 1954."

Bannister beat Landy that time in a race dubbed the Miracle Mile at the Empire Games in Vancouver.

Brad Hunt, agent to Michael Johnson (those percentages flow a lot easier in the one on one business), is a devoted advocate of the new format and already has plans to follow up on tomorrow's event by staging a one hour decathlon event featuring Olympic champion Dan O'Brien and another event which will pit O'Brien against a gridiron football star in each of the decathlon's 10 events. And you thought the Superstars concept was dead? Get your kit on Pat Spillane.

As for the race itself, it is expected that the distance and the shape of the track (more than half the race will be run around a curve) will suit Johnson. He is tipped to win in a time of about 14.8 seconds.

Both athletes, incidentally, have signed contracts which forfeit all money should either test positive. However, the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport insist that the proposed tests don't conform to what they consider the minimum standard for drug free sport.

"We take the minimum standard to be the year round, unannounced, random testing conducted by an independent body open to public scrutiny," said a spokesman. "Testing on the day is an important but insufficient aspect of drug free competition."

The organisers had no comment to make other than to reiterate that the athletes would lose their money if they tested positive.

Ah. Meet the new boss, just the same as the old boss.