Seb Coe believes Ultimate Championship will be a ‘gamechanger’ in athletics
The president of World Athletics has said that this new team competition, officially unveiled by the sport's governing body, would be a "game-changer" in athletics. The inaugural event will take place in Budapest from 11 to 13 September 2026 and will be held every two years.
The federation stated that the event would provide "a spectacular conclusion to the summer athletics season in years where there is no World Athletics Championships". The event features a "record-setting" prize fund of $10 million (€9.6 million).
World Athletics described it as "the largest ever offered in athletics", with champions set to receive $150,000 (€143,000). Each session will last three hours, and athletes will represent both themselves and their national teams, competing in the national kit.
Coe, speaking at a press conference at the stadium in Budapest where the 2023 World Championships took place, said: "This new global event will be a game-changer for our sport and for our athletes. We want to deliver athletics to our fans in a way they've never seen before, with the best of the best athletes in our sport going head-to-head in a passion-fuelled, high-octane festival of sport, complete with sound, light, and innovation."
Coe emphasised his ambition to create a "world-beating" event that could "engage viewers who might never have watched athletics". He told AFP in an interview: "This is the holy grail of all sports: how do you reach out to all audiences in a way that feels familiar to them?"
The announcement comes following the unveiling of details by former Olympic sprint champion Michael Johnson about his four-meet Grand Slam Track series, which debuts next year with three-day events in Kingston, Jamaica; Miami; Philadelphia; and Los Angeles.
Johnson's series is widely regarded as a challenge to the established Diamond League circuit as athletics seeks greater visibility outside the Olympics and World Championships. The Ultimate Championship, which unlike Grand Slam Track will also include field events, will take place after the Diamond League finals.
