The World Athletics Ultimate Championship isn’t just going to be a gathering of stars, but the champions are set to split a whopping prize purse of $10 million.
Track and field athletes will fight for the biggest paycheck in sports history after World Athletics announced a whopping prize pot of $10 million for the Ultimate Championship set to debut in September 2026.
The World Athletics Ultimate Championship is a new three-day competition in which 360-star athletes will compete in 28 events for one record-setting prize pot and to determine the champion of champions.
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According to the World Athletics, the prestigious championship will feature women’s and men’s competition in the 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, 1500m, 5000m, high hurdles, 400m hurdles, pole vault, high jump, long jump and javelin, as well as the women’s triple jump, men’s hammer throw, and mixed 4x100m and 4x400m.
Each event will be stacked with finals* – no heats, no easing in.
For the track events, the semifinals will start with eight athletes, and only the top four in each will make it through to the final. The 1500m, 5000m, and relay races will be straight finals – no second chances.
Currently, 26 athletes have already automatically qualified as reigning individual Olympic champions from Paris. The list of qualified athletes will also include:
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- 26 world champions from the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25
- 25 Diamond League Final winners from the 2026 season
- The best performers of 2026
In the mixed 4x100m and 4x400m, teams will be able to qualify automatically via the 2026 World Athletics Relays in Botswana.
Breakdown of the $10 million prize purse
Every athlete lining up will be rewarded for their performance, but there can only be one winner. Every ultimate champion will walk away with the top prize of US$150,000.
The World Athletics Ultimate Championship is scheduled to take place at the Budapest National Athletics Centre from September 11-13, 2026.
