The first 26 qualified athletes have been named and the distribution of finals has been confirmed to kick off the 500-day countdown for the World Athletics Ultimate Championship.
Three days, 28 events, some 360 star athletes and one record-setting prize pot. All eyes will be on Budapest’s National Athletics Centre on 11-13 September 2026, when the world’s greatest will settle the debate.
Finals by session
In the battle to determine the champion of champions, the world’s best athletes will clash in 28 events across three action-packed sessions of competition.
The programme 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.
Every moment counts. Each session will be stacked with finals* – no heats, no easing in.
On the track, the semifinals will star 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.
The finals:
Friday 11 September
• Men’s 5000m
• Women’s 100m hurdles
• Men’s 110m hurdles
• Women’s high jump
• Men’s pole vault
• Women’s long jump
• Men’s hammer throw
• Mixed 4x100m relay
• Mixed 4x400m relay
Saturday 12 September
• Women’s 100m
• Men’s 100m
• Women’s 800m
• Women’s 1500m
• Women’s 400m hurdles
• Men’s 400m hurdles
• Women’s pole vault
• Men’s long jump
• Women’s javelin throw
Sunday 13 September
• Women’s 200m
• Men’s 200m
• Women’s 400m
• Men’s 400m
• Men’s 800m
• Men’s 1500m
• Women’s 5000m
• Men’s high jump
• Women’s triple jump
• Men’s javelin throw
Three sessions of high-octane action, each of about three hours in duration. The Ultimate Championship will be a non-stop passion-fuelled festival of track and field.
Olympic champions: qualified
As the pinnacle of the 2026 track and field season, the Ultimate Championship will pit world champions and Olympic champions against Wanda Diamond League winners and the year’s best performing athletes, to crown the ultimate champion.
Twenty-six athletes have already automatically qualified as reigning individual Olympic champions:
• 100m: Julien Alfred (LCA) and Noah Lyles (USA)
• 200m: Gabby Thomas (USA) and Letsile Tebogo (BOT)
• 400m: Marileidy Paulino (DOM) and Quincy…
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