Not long ago, American sprinting was facing a question: could the U.S. still produce an Olympic men’s 100m champion? America had waited 20 years since Justin Gatlin’s gold in Athens 2004, with doubts growing ahead of Paris 2024. Then Noah Lyles changed the story by winning the 100m crown for the United States, but he could not win the 200m double as Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo bested him. Now, with LA 2028 drawing closer, the latest results from the World Athletics Ultimate Championship suggest that American sprinters could be ready to dominate both the men’s and women’s 100m and 200m on home soil.
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The signs became clear on September 12, when Melissa Jefferson-Wooden and Kenny Bednarek gave the United States a perfect start by winning both 100m titles. Jefferson-Wooden produced one of her quickest career runs to secure a 10.62-second victory over Paris 2024 Olympic champion Julien Alfred, who clocked 10.74. 2023 World champion Sha’Carri Richardson finished third in 10.76.
Jefferson-Wooden’s win wasn’t just another big win. It was the second marvellous performance of her career, with her 10.62 being the joint 7th-fastest women’s 100m time ever. Bednarek was the other big American winner on the men’s side in the 100m. He crossed the finish line in 9.85 seconds to unseat reigning 2025 world champion Jamaica’s Oblique Seville, who was second in 9.90.
With both 100m titles already belonging to Americans, the pressure shifted to the 200m the following day. Jefferson-Wooden had the chance to complete her own double, while Bednarek was chasing the same achievement. Jefferson-Wooden once again delivered. She won the women’s 200m in 21.47 seconds, beating Gabby Thomas, the Paris 2024 Olympic champion. Seeing the clock, Jefferson-Wooden could only say one word: “Wow!”
She then went to the winner’s circle once again for her second trophy in two nights, completing the 100m-200m double and putting together $300,000 from the two wins. Bednarek followed the same script in the men’s 200m. The American clocked 19.52 seconds to win the title and record the fastest 200m time in the world in 2026. Even more striking was the opponent he defeated.
Standing in his way was Tebogo, the same athlete who had denied Lyles the Olympic 200m title in Paris two years earlier. This time, it was Bednarek who came out on top. The victory completed Bednarek’s 100m-200m double and gave the United States all four individual sprint titles at the Ultimate Championship.
LA 2028 is still ahead, and nothing can guarantee Olympic gold. But the Ultimate Championship has given American fans plenty of reason to dream. If Bednarek and Jefferson-Wooden can carry this form into the next two seasons, the prospect of seeing Americans dominate the 100m and 200m on home soil suddenly looks much closer than it did before Paris.
But the path to LA 2028 will be far from easy for either of the American double champions.
Jefferson-Wooden and Bednarek face familiar rivals on road to LA 2028
The 100m is one of the most dangerous events for Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, with Julien Alfred being one of the biggest threats. The Saint Lucian already has a major win over the American by beating Jefferson-Wooden to Olympic gold at the Paris 2024 Games in 10.72, while Jefferson took bronze in 10.92.
In 2025, Jefferson-Wooden turned the tables at the World Championships by winning the world title in 10.61 as Alfred settled for bronze in 10.84. Then in 2026, things got more heated. Alfred beat Jefferson-Wooden in Rome, but the American responded in Silesia by winning in 10.78.
Richardson is another familiar rival for Jefferson-Wooden. The two Americans have raced each other many times since 2023. At the 2025 World Championships, Jefferson-Wooden won the 100m in 10.61, while Richardson finished fifth in 10.94.
The gap has remained close in 2026. Jefferson-Wooden edged Richardson at the Prefontaine Classic by winning 10.78 to 10.79, before beating her again in Silesia. Richardson finished third in 10.96 behind Jefferson-Wooden and Alfred, and she later claimed third again at the Ultimate Championship in 10.76.
On the men’s side, Bednarek is up against a similar challenge, as Noah Lyles is one of his top two American opponents in both the 100m and 200m. They’ve been rivals for a number of years, and Bednarek placed second to Lyles in a couple of big 200m performances at the 2022 World Championships and the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials.
The pair also finished on the Olympic podium in Paris, although neither managed to take the gold. Bednarek won silver in the 200m in 19.62, while Lyles took bronze in 19.70 as Letsile Tebogo claimed the Olympic title. Their rivalry became even more heated at the 2025 U.S. Championships, where Lyles edged Bednarek 19.63 to 19.67 in the 200m.
Over 200m, however, Letsile Tebogo may be the rival Bednarek has the most reason to watch. The Botswana star was the man who stood between Bednarek and Olympic gold in Paris, winning the 200m in 19.46 while Bednarek settled for silver in 19.62. Bednarek has since managed to answer back. He defeated Tebogo in the 2024 Diamond League Final in Brussels, winning in 19.67.
Their rivalry took another turn at the Ultimate Championship, where Bednarek ran a world-leading 19.52 to defeat the reigning Olympic champion and complete his 100m-200m double. With Alfred, Richardson, Lyles and Tebogo all already familiar opponents, neither Jefferson-Wooden nor Bednarek can afford to treat their Budapest doubles as the end of the story.