Letsile Tebogo among athletes confirmed for inaugural Ultimate World Championships
Reading Time: 3min | Wed. 15.04.26. | 21:11
Beyond the race for titles, Tebogo and Jefferson-Wooden will also play leadership roles off the track, serving as team captains during the Kids’ Athletics Ultimate Challenge
Global sprint stars Letsile Tebogo and Melissa Jefferson-Wooden have been confirmed among the top athletes for the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship, with just 150 days remaining before the groundbreaking competition gets underway.
The first-ever edition of the championship is scheduled for Friday, 11 to Sunday, 13 September in Budapest, Hungary, where the world’s finest athletes will converge at the National Athletics Centre.
Download our Mozzart Sport App for more news
The three-day event will feature 28 disciplines: 16 track, 10 field, and two relays, all contested as straight finals, eliminating heats to deliver a high-stakes, winner-takes-all format.
Beyond the race for titles, Tebogo and Jefferson-Wooden will also play leadership roles off the track, serving as team captains during the Kids’ Athletics Ultimate Challenge.
The initiative will bring together youth from across Budapest for a special activation at the Zsivotzky Gyula National Athletics Centre on the eve of competition.
Speaking on their involvement, World Athletics President Sebastian Coe praised the duo’s commitment, noting that the event aims to elevate athletics while showcasing athletes beyond competition.
The championship, he added, will provide a platform for stars to connect with communities and express their broader passions.
“Melissa Jefferson-Wooden and Letsile Tebogo are two of our sport’s biggest stars, and we are excited they are committed to the Ultimate Championship. We are also proud to work with them to connect the event to their individual passions outside of competition.
The Ultimate is all about elevating the profile of our sport and its heroes, both on the track and off, and that includes creating opportunities for athletes to showcase all aspects of their personalities and interests,” Coe said.
Tebogo, who clinched 200m gold at the 2024 Olympic Games and was crowned World Athlete of the Year the same season, has been a Kids’ Athletics ambassador since early 2025.
The Botswana sensation emphasized the importance of giving back, saying success in sport comes with the responsibility to inspire the next generation.
"I have had such a good experience as a Kids’ Athletics ambassador, and I couldn’t be more excited to be a part of the Kids’ Athletics Ultimate Challenge as part of the Ultimate Championship.
Being the best in the world doesn’t just mean winning gold medals. There is a responsibility to give back, and to show young people the power that sport can have in all our lives,” Tebogo said.
Jefferson-Wooden, on the other hand, arrives in top form after a stellar outing at the 2025 World Athletics Championships, where she secured three gold medals in the 100m, 200m, and 4x100m relay.
The American also claimed silver in the 100m at the Paris Olympics, further cementing her status among sprinting’s elite.
Both athletes were recently named Kids’ Athletics ambassadors for 2026 and will feature at the upcoming World Athletics Relays Gaborone 2026, where they will lead youth engagement activities.
The Kids’ Athletics program continues to use the sport as a tool to inspire children worldwide to embrace active lifestyles.
The Ultimate Championships are designed to reshape the global athletics calendar, bringing together Olympic champions, world champions, Diamond League winners, and top-ranked athletes in a single showdown.
Held every two years, the event aims to definitively crown the “champion of champions” in what promises to be one of the sport’s most anticipated additions.