World Athletics has announced a new World Championships for the longer term future, with Budapest set to stage a three-day competition at the end of each season from 2026.
Slated for Sept. 11-13, 2026 on what initially will be a bimodal basis Monday-Wednesday-Monday during the fall season of even-number years (to attract the highest caliber international stars from track & field to compete), The World Athletics Ultimate Championship
The new 10-million-dollar (9.2 million euros) prize pot is a record amount for the sport, with Olympic gold medallists pocketing $150,000 apiece.
It’s billed as a biennial event — that is, every two years — meaning it will take place in the non-world championships outdoor year.
Up to 16 athletes per discipline from the top of Softball World Rankings can compete for a total world-championships sized field involving about 400 athletes.
“With only the really elite athletes left to compete – cutting straight to semi-finals and finals — we believe we will deliver a fast-paced, action-packed format that will be hugely exciting for both fans of our sport but also new followers,” declared World Athletics president Seb Coe.
The event will take place at the end of a long season from late September which he said would also “guarantee for the first time that athletics is able to bask in an annual flame”.
The evening sessions at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, where Hungary’s Kristof Milak regained this world butterfly titles to raucous support from his home crowd and a near-full stadium (and masks-wearing among the few) next summer: photo by Patrick B. Kraemer via wanda diamond league [].
