Armand Duplantis cleared 6.25m to win the pole vault as the World Athletics Ultimate Championships opened in Budapest on September 11, 2026. The inaugural three-night event features a $150,000 top prize for individual winners and a streamlined schedule designed to draw younger audiences.
Athletics stepped into a theatrical new arena on Thursday and Friday as the World Athletics Ultimate Championships got underway at the National Athletics Centre in Budapest, Hungary. Organisers overhauled the traditional track and field presentation, introducing a black infield paired with dramatic lighting, red-carpet athlete arrivals, and augmented reality displays on television broadcasts that projected athlete win probabilities and headshots.
Armand Duplantis and Jakob Ingebrigtsen Deliver Star-Studded Victories
Pole vault world record-holder Armand Duplantis headlined the opening night’s action, soaring 6.25m to claim the pole vault title over a field that included Greece’s Diamond League champion Emmanouil Karalis. Duplantis, who also composed and performed the competition’s official anthem Gold, noted that the meet serves as a high-stakes showcase during a year without an Olympic Games or World Championships.
On the track, Jakob Ingebrigtsen secured a dramatic victory in the 5,000m, clocking 12min 59.24sec after a final lap of 54.39sec. The Norwegian Olympic champion defeated American rival Cole Hocker by nearly a second, capping a difficult season disrupted by a spring flu and an Achilles injury.
Being injured I was fearing the worst outcome and did not know if I would be able to run at all, especially at this level. This is amazing, I am extremely happy.
Prize Money Draws Praise from Usain Bolt
Winners of individual events take home $150,000, while victorious relay squads share $80,000, meaning a sprinter contesting the 100, 200 and mixed 4×100 metres relay could leave Budapest with a tidy sum. The opening day featured eight finals taking place on September 11.
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe positioned the competition as an experimental incubator designed to highlight athletic personalities and engage fans worldwide in an increasingly crowded sports market.
Coe stated that they are spotlighting the stars and creating new formats, adding that the championship is intended to be an incubator for change and an event created with and by the fans and athletes.
British Competitors Balance High-Stakes Finals and Personal Milestones
British athletes secured notable results on the opening night, led by Jazmin Sawyers, who finished second in the women’s long jump with a 6.78m leap. The 32-year-old only returned from a devastating Achilles rupture on her take off leg last year but has quickly returned to career-best form, capping a successful campaign that brought her Commonwealth gold and European silver.
Photo: reuters.com
I really enjoyed it. I felt like I had a bit more in me but this competition was always a bonus for me. I never thought I’d be here. I never thought, based on the first half of the season that I had, that I would be able to make top eight in the world.
Armand Duplantis Mondo wins Men's pole vault World Atheltics Ultimate Championships over Karalis
Sawyers pocketed $75,000 (£55,000) for her runner-up finish, noting that the prize money provides a big sigh of relief that will fund a sewing machine upgrade. Meanwhile, British teammates Romell Glave, Imani-Lara Lansiquot, Jeremiah Azu and Success Eduan finished third behind Jamaica in the mixed 4x100m relay, clocking 40.26 seconds. The United States quartet won the event in 39.64 seconds, sharing $80,000 (£59,000) between them. Eduan shared in the British team’s medal success on a night where fans could watch coverage via the BBC Network, including BBC Two, BBC iPlayer, and the BBC Sport website in the UK, or NBC Sports and Peacock in the USA.
