For years, track and field athletes have struggled to make enough money in the sport. Slam Track tried to change that conversation by offering $100,000 to each Slam winner, but the league later collapsed financially. Now, with the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship set to run from September 11 in Budapest, a new competition is putting money at the heart of the sport with a $10 million prize pool. Olympic champion Melissa Jefferson-Wooden has explained why this event could mean more than an Olympic or World Championship medal.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
On August 19, Justin Gatlin’s podcast featured Jefferson-Wooden, who opened up about the new championship and what athletes can expect in Budapest. Gatlin asked her to explain what makes the Ultimate Championship different from the Olympics and Worlds.
Her answer highlighted one of the biggest changes. “So, it’s something that World Athletics is putting on this year,” Jefferson-Wooden said. “Instead of…with the World Championships or the Olympic Games, you only are allowed to take the top three in each event from every country.”
The Ultimate Championship will work differently. “They are taking the top 16 ranked in each event,” she explained. That means athletes are selected based on their world ranking rather than being restricted by the three‑per‑country rule.
The format also changes the schedule. Jefferson-Wooden noted that the Olympics and Worlds stretch across more than a week, with multiple rounds before a final. The Ultimate Championship compresses the action into three days. “Instead of it being three rounds and over 10 days, it’s going to be packed into three days and everything is two rounds,” she said. For sprinters, that means races will move incredibly quickly.
“The hundred will be run…we’ll know who the ultimate champion is after one day,” she explained. The same applies to the 200m. With little recovery time between rounds, every race will carry added weight.
The prize money is another major difference. Each event winner will receive $150,000. “The biggest difference about the Ultimate Championship versus the Olympic Games or the World Championships is the prize money,” Jefferson-Wooden said. “If you win, that’s $150,000. Boom, boom, cha‑ching.” She added: “Yeah, and I’m doubling, so I’m going to go big or go home.” Targeting both the 100m and 200m, two victories would mean $300,000.
Melissa Jefferson-Wooden Reveals How Lyles and Duplantis Are Shaping the Championship
Jefferson-Wooden also emphasized athlete involvement. World Athletics is giving competitors more say in how the championship is organized. “They’re really big on trying to get the athletes involved as far as their input on how they’re doing certain things,” she said.
She pointed to Mondo Duplantis and Noah Lyles as examples. “I know athletes like Mondo and Noah, they’re heavily involved,” she said. Lyles is serving as an Ultimate Star, Ultimate MC, and Creative Adviser, working on athlete introductions, fan engagement, awards, and presentation. Duplantis is composing the official Ultimate Championship anthem, which will be used in stadiums and broadcasts.
Athlete input also extends to competition operations. “It’s just, you know, hearing from the athlete and saying like, ‘We like this, we don’t like this,’” Jefferson-Wooden explained. “Okay, well we’re going to do this at Ultimate instead.”
That approach could make the Ultimate Championship feel less like another traditional meet and more like an event designed around the athletes themselves — with money and voice at the center.