Final:&nbsp;Sunday 13 Sep, 20:12
Contenders: Cole Hocker (USA) 🏅 Isaac Nader (POR) 🌍 Cameron Myers (AUS) 💎 Josh Kerr (GBR) Jakob Ingebrigtsen (NOR) Yared Nuguse (USA) Timothy Cheruiyot (KEN) Azeddine Habz (FRA) Jake Wightman (GBR) Hobbs Kessler (USA) Ethan Strand (USA) Robert Farken (GER) Phanuel Kipkosgei Koech (KEN)
World lead: 3:27.62 Josh Kerr (GBR) London, 18 Jul <a href="https://worldathletics.org/records/toplists/middlelong/1500-metres/outdoor/men/senior/2026" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2026 world list</a> | <a href="https://worldathletics.org/world-rankings/1500m/men" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world rankings</a>
World record: 3:26.00 Hicham El Guerrouj (MAR) Rome, 14 Jul 1998 <a href="https://worldathletics.org/records/all-time-toplists/middlelong/1500-metres/outdoor/men/senior" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world all-time list</a> | <a href="https://worldathletics.org/records/by-progression/1206?type=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world record progression</a>
<ul>
<li>Josh Kerr and Jakob Ingebrigtsen receive exceptional invitations, setting up epic clash</li>
<li>Cole Hocker and Isaac Nader go on the hunt for more global honours</li>
<li>Cameron Myers seeks more success after Diamond League title win</li>
</ul>
Such is the strength of the men&rsquo;s 1500m right now, exceptional invitations were extended to ensure the competition in Budapest really will be an ultimate clash.
As a result, Great Britain&rsquo;s 2023 world champion Josh Kerr and Norway&rsquo;s multiple Olympic and world gold medallist Jakob Ingebrigtsen are entered as part of a field that already featured USA&rsquo;s Olympic champion Cole Hocker and Portugal&rsquo;s world champion Isaac Nader as well as a whole host of other strong contenders.
Despite not having raced a 1500m yet this year, Kerr holds the world lead of 3:27.62 &ndash; a time he set on his way to a mile world record of 3:42.66 at the London Diamond League. That race had been his focus for the season, but now his sights are on adding another title to his collection. It was in Budapest three years ago that Kerr secured his first global gold &ndash; ahead of Ingebrigtsen.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve made some choices this season that have created plenty of noise, but I&rsquo;ve always wanted to prove myself in the biggest races, against the best in the world,&rdquo; said Kerr, who went on to win the mile at the Commonwealth Games on home soil in Glasgow.
Ingebrigtsen already had an automatic invitation for the 5000m at the Ultimate Championship as the reigning Olympic champion. Should he decide to contest both the 1500m and 5000m in Budapest, he would clash with Kerr over 1500m for the first time since the Zurich Diamond League in 2024 when Ingebrigtsen was second and Kerr fifth.
Making his comeback after achilles surgery, Ingebrigtsen opened his season in August and won his fourth successive European 5000m title. He has raced the 1500m three times since then, securing two fourth-place finishes and one fifth place on the Diamond League circuit.
It was Australia&rsquo;s Cameron Myers who ended the Diamond League season on a high as he stormed to the overall title at the final in Brussels. The 20-year-old also ran an Oceanian record of 3:28.00 in Paris, won the mile during the Diamond League in Eugene and was runner-up to Kerr in the Commonwealth Games mile.
Second place in the Diamond League final was secured by Kenya&rsquo;s Phanuel Kipkosgei Koech, who was also runner up in Silesia and Zurich, while USA&rsquo;s Ethan Strand was third in Brussels ahead of Ingebrigtsen. They all clash again in Budapest.
Hocker won his Olympic title ahead of Kerr and Yared Nuguse and, like Ingebrigtsen, is entered for a 1500m and 5000m double in Budapest. Hocker won the Zurich Diamond League ahead of Koech and Nuguse, and was seventh at the final in Brussels.
Nuguse, who ran a 3:29.36 split during the London mile, also competes along with Nader, who won the 2025 world title ahead of 2022 world champion Jake Wightman &ndash; another rivalry that will be renewed in Budapest. With one straight final featuring 13 athletes, competition will be fierce.
Jess Whittington for World Athletics
Title key: 🏅 Olympic champion, 🌍 world champion, 💎 Diamond League champion

World Athletics Ultimate Championship

A pre-competition look at the men's 1500m at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship Budapest 26

Ultimate preview: men's 1500m

Final:&nbsp;Sunday 13 Sep, 19:53
Contenders: United States (USA) 🌍 Netherlands (NED) 🏅 Jamaica (JAM) Norway (NOR) Great Britain &amp; NI (GBR) Kenya (KEN) Italy (ITA) Belgium (BEL) Hungary (HUN)
World lead: 3:07.47 United States, Gaborone, 3 May <a href="https://worldathletics.org/records/toplists/relays/4x400-metres-relay/all/mixed/senior/2026" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2026 world list</a> | <a href="https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-relays/world-athletics-relays-7216920/results/mixed/4x400-metres-relay/final/result" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Relays final results</a>
World record: 3:07.41 United States (Vernon Norwood, Shamier Little, Bryce Deadmon, Kaylyn Brown), Paris, 2 Aug 2024 <a href="https://worldathletics.org/records/all-time-toplists/relays/4x400-metres-relay/all/mixed/senior" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world all-time list</a> | <a href="https://worldathletics.org/records/by-progression/20550?type=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world record progression</a>
<ul>
<li>World champions USA came within 0.06 of their own world record when winning the World Relays in 3:07.47</li>
<li>Jamaica moved to fourth on the world all-time list with their 3:08.24 national record in Gaborone</li>
<li>Olympic champions Netherlands and European champions Norway add further strength to a deep nine-team final</li>
</ul>
The United States have repeatedly set the standard in the mixed 4x400m, and they arrive in Budapest having come tantalisingly close to rewriting the record books once again.
The world champions dominated the World Relays final in Gaborone in May, Bryce Deadmon, Paris Peoples, Jenoah McKiver and Bailey Lear combining for 3:07.47. It was a championship record and just 0.06 shy of the world record the USA set at the Paris Olympics two years ago.
Jamaica produced an equally significant performance behind them. Their 3:08.24 national record moved them to fourth on the world all-time list and established them as one of the leading threats heading into Budapest.
The World Relays provided the main qualification route for the Ultimate, with the first six teams in Gaborone earning automatic invitations before further places were decided through the top lists. Host nation Hungary joins the field through an exceptional invitation.
But the strongest challenge to the two Gaborone front-runners may come from teams with considerably more championship pedigree.
Netherlands are the Olympic champions. Femke Broeders-Bol produced a remarkable anchor leg to overhaul the USA in Paris, with the Dutch clocking a European record of 3:07.43 &ndash; just 0.02 outside the world record. They then finished second to the USA at last year's World Championships in Tokyo.
Great Britain &amp; NI took Olympic bronze in Paris with 3:08.01 and have remained among the world's leading nations, while Norway have emerged as a major force this season. Karsten Warholm and Henriette J&aelig;ger helped them to European gold in Birmingham last month in a national record of 3:09.62, ahead of Britain and Netherlands.
Belgium also possess recent global pedigree, having taken world bronze outdoors in Tokyo before winning the mixed 4x400m short track title at the World Indoor Championships earlier this year.
Kenya and Italy both earned their Ultimate places through strong World Relays performances, while hosts Hungary complete a final in which team selection could prove every bit as important as individual form.
With no heats and no second chances, the first Ultimate mixed 4x400m title will come down to one race &ndash; and recent history suggests the world record could again be within reach.
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics
Title key: 🏅 Olympic champion, 🌍 world champion

A pre-competition look at the mixed 4x400m at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship Budapest 26

Ultimate preview: mixed 4x400m

Semifinals:&nbsp;Saturday 12 Sep, 18:26 Final:&nbsp;Sunday 13 Sep, 19:41
Contenders: Emmanuel Wanyonyi (KEN) 🏅&nbsp;🌍 💎&nbsp; Djamel Sedjati (ALG) Marco Arop (CAN) Mohamed Attaoui (ESP) Brandon Miller (USA) Max Burgin (GBR) Mark English (IRL) Eliott Crestan (BEL) Navasky Anderson (JAM) Ben Pattison (GBR) Gabriel Tual (FRA) Handal Roban (VIN) Marino Bloudek (CRO) Donavan Brazier (USA) Francesco Pernici (ITA) Yanis Meziane (FRA)
World lead: 1:41.76 Emmanuel Wanyonyi (KEN) Zurich, 27 Aug <a href="https://worldathletics.org/records/toplists/middlelong/800-metres/outdoor/men/senior/2026" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2026 world list</a> | <a href="https://worldathletics.org/world-rankings/800m/men" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world rankings</a>
World record: 1:40.91 David Rudisha (KEN) London, 9 Aug 2012 <a href="https://worldathletics.org/records/all-time-toplists/middlelong/800-metres/outdoor/men/senior" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world all-time list</a> | <a href="https://worldathletics.org/records/by-progression/951?type=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">world record progression</a>
<ul>
<li>Emmanuel Wanyonyi is once again the athlete to beat in the 800m following a hugely impressive Zurich win</li>
<li>Marco Arop returns to the track on which he won his 2023 world title</li>
<li>Djamel Sedjati has also been breathing down Wanyonyi&rsquo;s neck during the course of the season</li>
</ul>
Can anyone stop Emmanuel Wanyonyi in Budapest?
The Hungarian capital was the scene of one of his rare defeats at the World Championships back in 2023 but, at that point, he was just 19 and relatively new to the international scene.
Since then he has dominated his discipline, winning the Olympic title before becoming a world champion, and continuing that form into this season.
He already has a world record to his name in 2026 &ndash; for the 1000m &ndash; but he and his coach Claudio Berardelli have made no secret of the fact that they are chasing David Rudisha&rsquo;s 14-year-old 800m world record.
Wanyonyi is less than a second away from his Kenyan compatriot&rsquo;s mark of 1:40.91 this year. The man with a PB of 1:41.11 from 2024 won in Zurich last month in 1:41.76 and backed that up with another win at the Diamond League Final in Brussels.
But any suggestion the 800m in Budapest might be a bit like the solo time trial that Rudisha made the London Olympics appear all those years ago have been dispelled by his rivals&rsquo; performances.
Algeria&rsquo;s Djamel Sedjati was just a whisker behind Wanyonyi in their thrilling race in Zurich and less than a tenth of a second separates the fastest three in the world this year with Canada&rsquo;s Marco Arop also very much in contention. Arop claimed his world title ahead of Wanyonyi in Budapest in 2023 and has run 1:41.84 this year.
Belgium&rsquo;s Eliott Crestan and Spain&rsquo;s Mohamed Attaoui respectively claimed world indoor 800m silver and bronze in Poland earlier this year and will want to make their mark again.&nbsp;
US protagonists in the line-up include Brandon Miller and 2019 world champion Donavan Brazier, plus there is a double British challenge looming in the form of Max Burgin and Ben Pattison.
Then there is Mark English, the first man to win gold for Ireland at the European Championships recently in Birmingham, while France&rsquo;s Yanis Meziane stormed to a PB of 1:42.87 during the Diamond League Final to finish third and secure his place in Budapest.
Matt Majendie for World Athletics
Title key: 🏅 Olympic champion, 🌍 world champion, 💎 Diamond League champion

A pre-competition look at the men's 800m at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship Budapest 26

Ultimate preview: men's 800m

Get ready to enjoy 3 days of exciting competition!

Hungarian

Ultimate Budapest 26 starting soon!

Az Ultimate Budapest 26 hamarosan kezdődik!

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Legújabb videók, amelyeket érdemes megnézni

100 Metres

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Hammer Throw

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100 Metres Hurdles

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4x100 Metres Relay

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Explore the latest results and top stories.

Fedezd fel a legfrissebb eredményeket és a legfontosabb történeteket.

Ultimate Day 1 is Live

Background

Ultimate Championship Budapest 26 is over.  Discover the results and highlights.

Az Ultimate Championship Budapest 26 véget ért. Fedezd fel az eredményeket és a legjobb pillanatokat.

That's a wrap!

381 athletes from 65 federations set to compete

Final entry lists published

Ultimate champions will earn a trophy that is made complete by unique bracelet gifted to each participating athlete

Trophies revealed for World Athletics Ultimate Championship

Now confirmed: list of athletes receiving exceptional invitations

Exceptional invitations

<h2 style="text-align: center; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">FOLLOW THE STAR JOURNEY TO BUDAPEST</h2>
<div style="padding: 56.25% 0 0 0; position: relative;"><iframe style="position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%;" title="World Athletics Ultimate Championship" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/1177317469?autoplay=1&amp;muted=1&amp;badge=0&amp;autopause=0&amp;player_id=0&amp;app_id=58479&amp;loop=1" frameborder="0"></iframe></div>

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/sweden/armand-duplantis-14679502" target="_blank" rel="noopener">POLE VAULT &bull; SWE</a>

MONDO DUPLANTIS

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/ukraine/yaroslava-mahuchikh-14739628" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HIGH JUMP &bull; UKR</a>

YAROSLAVA MAHUCHIKH

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/norway/jakob-ingebrigtsen-14653717" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5000M &bull; NOR</a>

JAKOB INGEBRIGTSEN

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/masai-russell-14659011" target="_blank" rel="noopener">100M HURDLES &bull; USA</a>

MASAI RUSSELL

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/canada/ethan-katzberg-14809348" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HAMMER THROW &bull; CAN</a>

ETHAN KATZBERG

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/saint-lucia/julien-alfred-14646562" target="_blank" rel="noopener">100M &bull; LCA</a>

JULIEN ALFRED

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/greece/miltiadis-tentoglou-14669734" target="_blank" rel="noopener">LONG JUMP &bull; GRE</a>

MILTIADIS TENTOGLOU

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/great-britain-ni/keely-hodgkinson-14642894" target="_blank" rel="noopener">800M &bull; GBR</a>

KEELY HODGKINSON

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/rai-benjamin-14574865" target="_blank" rel="noopener">400M HURDLES &bull; USA</a>

RAI BENJAMIN

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/japan/haruka-kitaguchi-14649131" target="_blank" rel="noopener">JAVELIN THROW &bull; JPN</a>

HARUKA KITAGUCHI

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/commonwealth-of-dominica/thea-lafond-14416826" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TRIPLE JUMP &bull; DMA</a>

THEA LAFOND

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/botswana/letsile-tebogo-14883897" target="_blank" rel="noopener">200M &bull; BOT</a>

LETSILE TEBOGO

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/dominican-republic/marileidy-paulino-14749613" target="_blank" rel="noopener">400M &bull; DOM</a>

MARILEIDY PAULINO

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/cole-hocker-14905834" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1500M &bull; USA</a>

COLE HOCKER

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/gabrielle-thomas-14733520" target="_blank" rel="noopener">200M &bull; USA</a>

GABRIELLE THOMAS

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/kenya/emmanuel-wanyonyi-14974928" target="_blank" rel="noopener">800M &bull; KEN</a>

EMMANUEL WANYONYI

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/pakistan/arshad-nadeem-14698105" target="_blank" rel="noopener">JAVELIN THROW &bull; PAK</a>

ARSHAD NADEEM

Entered for Budapest – qualified by winning in Paris

Olympic champions

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/australia/nicola-olyslagers-14455361" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HIGH JUMP &bull; AUS</a>

NICOLA OLYSLAGERS

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/botswana/busang-collen-kebinatshipi-14935809" target="_blank" rel="noopener">400M &bull; BOT</a>

COLLEN KEBINATSHIPI

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/melissa-jefferson-wooden-14756997" target="_blank" rel="noopener">100M &amp; 200M &bull; USA</a>

MELISSA JEFFERSON-WOODEN

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/jamaica/oblique-seville-14737998" target="_blank" rel="noopener">100M &bull; JAM</a>

OBLIQUE SEVILLE

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/cole-hocker-14905834" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5000M &bull; USA</a>

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/katie-moon-14373744" target="_blank" rel="noopener">POLE VAULT &bull; USA</a>

KATIE MOON

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/portugal/isaac-nader-14756630" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1500M &bull; POR</a>

ISAAC NADER

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/cordell-tinch-14719972" target="_blank" rel="noopener">110M HURDLES &bull; USA</a>

CORDELL TINCH

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/cuba/leyanis-perez-hernandez-14828679" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TRIPLE JUMP &bull; CUB</a>

LEYANIS PEREZ HERNANDEZ

<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/trinidad-and-tobago/keshorn-walcott-14376122" target="_blank" rel="noopener">JAVELIN THROW &bull; TTO</a>

KESHORN WALCOTT

Entered for Budapest – qualified by winning in Tokyo

World champions

World Athletics Ultimate Championship – debuting 11-13 September 2026 in Budapest – register now for info

Next events

Mixed 4x100 Metres Relay

Women's High Jump

Men's 400 Metres