Red carpet and $10M in prize money at stake make track look different ahead of Ultimate Championship

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — There was a flowing, floor-length ivory gown, an infield with the grass painted jet black and the promise of green — $10 million to be exact — to be paid out to nearly 400 runners, throwers and jumpers this week.

The Ultimate Championship lived up to its vow to make track and field look different Thursday, the so-called “Day Before” celebration in advance of a first-of-its-kind meet that will feature trophies and $150,000 for all its winners, but no medals.

The day was highlighted by a red-carpet entrance and photo shoot for the athletes, a “draft” in which the 200-meter runners got to pick their lanes and, of course, an appearance by Usain Bolt — which instinctively means something big is happening on the track.

“I won a few world championships and it still doesn't add up to all the cash," Bolt said of the top prizes up for grabs in 27 events this week. “It incentivizes athletes to come out here and do their best. This is a job for them. I'm sad I missed out on it. But I'm happy for them.”

Nobody will feel too bad for Bolt, whose eight Olympic gold medals and 11 more at world championships made him a worldwide celebrity and multimillionaire, even though the wins themselves weren't worth all that much. And most of those who are showing up in Budapest this week have shoe or apparel contracts that help them pay the bills.

Still, the fact that it took until 2026 for track — the tentpole event of the Olympics and a sport that has produced so many indelible moments across time — to put together a $10 million prize pool when, for instance, the PGA Tour hands out $20 million eight times a year, didn't escape notice here.

“In every sport, every facet of life, we're always evolving,” said Joanna Hayes, a 2004 Olympic gold medalist who now coaches at UCLA and says a small contingent of her athletes still work side jobs to make ends meet. “And track is always last for, like, everything. But I think the idea is really cool."

And yes, this was a day to celebrate doing something different. The athletes played the part. On their way to the red carpet, they were greeted by hundreds of photographers who snapped glamour shots.

—Gabby Thomas came out in a matching white top and skirt with a sheer, gauzy jacket and stylish black sneakers.

—Melissa Jefferson-Wooden showed up wearing a floor-length ivory dress.

—Mondo Duplantis, the pole vaulter and part-time singer who wrote an anthem called “Gold” for these championships, wore a black suit with a maroon tie, a white pocket square and sunglasses.

—Ukrainian Olympic-champion high jumper Yaroslava Mahuchikh flashed a “peace” sign on her way out and painted her nails yellow to go with a lemonade-colored shirt and hat.

World Athletics made a point of making the entire day about content creation for the athletes, doing away with the Olympic world's strict regulations that limit that sort of activity at events like these.

“This is cool,” Mahuchikh said as she looked out on the grass painted black to give field athletes a special canvas on which to perform. “It's a different atmosphere for track. It looks like something special.”

To add to the vibe, organizers brought in the effervescent Olympic gold medalist Dawn Harper-Nelson to serve as an on-track host, and she promised “to blow your doors off” with her exploits and interviews from the field.

“It's bringing the attention to the sport that we begged for, that we wanted,” Harper-Nelson said. “Now, it's up for the athletes to do their part. You asked for it, and now the time has come.”

Among those vying for prizes Friday will be Duplantis and Mahuchikh, along with Masai Russell, who set the world record (12.09 seconds) in the 100 hurdles just two weeks ago.

Femke Broeders-Bol will run in her new event, an 800-meter semifinal.

The men's 5,000-meter final will give America's Cole Hocker and Norway's Jakob Ingebrigtsen the first of two chances to settle things on the track. After last week's Diamond League meet in Brussels, Ingebrigtsen, never one to hold back, called Hocker and his team “cowardly” for the way they used pacesetters in the 1,500.

Hocker and Ingebrigtsen are also entered in Sunday's 1,500, which means they both have a shot at walking out of Budapest with $300,000.

“It's definitely some good incentive,” said Thomas, whose 200-meter showdown with Jefferson-Wooden takes place Sunday.

Such a big prize pool was one way — maybe the only way — to bring such a celebrated group of athletes together in the even-numbered year between Summer Olympics, or what has long been considered an “off” year for track.

That's a label World Athletics President Seb Coe said he is eager to get rid of.

Holding a meet that mainly features Olympic and world champions along with top-ranked contenders, one that focuses on nonstop action and keeps elimination rounds at a minimum, and that even awards the last-place finisher $2,000, is certainly a start.

“But it's not just about the money,” said Letsile Tebogo, the Olympic champion and a favorite in the 200 meters now that Noah Lyles has pulled out with an injury and will be focusing solely on emcee duties and making the afterparty great.

“Some people do it for the money," Tebogo said. "But it's all about the experiences you want to have as an athlete.”

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