World Athletics Unveils Unique Trophies Ahead of Inaugural Ultimate Championship

World Athletics has unveiled the trophies that will be awarded to the winners of each event with just 10 days to go before the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship gets underway.

The new global championship is taking a different approach to recognising its champions, with organisers abandoning traditional medals in favour of distinctive trophies designed to reflect the event's central idea of crowning the best of the best.

The decision to move away from medals is intended to reinforce the championship's focus on identifying a single winner in each discipline.

“We have made an intentional decision to move away from medals as the awards at the Ultimate Championship,” said World Athletics President Sebastian Coe.

“This global championship is all about striving to be the one athlete who comes out on top. Distributing awards for the top three didn’t feel true to that foundational concept, so we are instead focused on the trophies given to the winners of each discipline.”

While there will be no gold, silver or bronze medals, every athlete competing at the championship will receive a unique participation token recognising their place among the world's elite track and field competitors.

The participation tokens will come in the form of personalised bracelets, with each athlete's name engraved on the outside and the official event name inscribed on the inside.

The adjustable bracelets have been designed to provide a custom fit for every competitor taking part in the championship, which will be held from September 11 to 13 in Budapest, Hungary.

But the bracelets are more than simply commemorative items. They form an important part of the design of the trophies awarded to the eventual champions.

Each Ultimate Champion's trophy has been designed to connect with their participation bracelet to create a single, complete piece.

The trophies draw inspiration from stone statues and the idea of “carving your name in history.” Their shape also echoes the star logo of the Ultimate Championship, while gold inlay serves as a symbol of victory.

A recessed groove in each trophy reflects its deliberately incomplete design. The piece only becomes complete when the champion adds their personalised bracelet, which already carries their name.

The concept for the customised trophy and token was inspired by Noah Lyles, who serves as the Ultimate MC and Creative Adviser.

The trophies and participation tokens are being created as bespoke works of art by Hungarian designers, jewellers and sculptors.

The craftsmanship is intended to bring together the vision of Lyles and World Athletics while giving each champion an award that is unique to the inaugural edition of the championship.

The presentation of the trophies will also break from the traditional medal ceremony format. After winning their respective events, each Ultimate Champion will collect their trophy directly from a plinth at the competition venue, where it will have been waiting throughout the event.

The moment will be accompanied by video, sound and fireworks before the champion begins a lap of honour.

Following the lap, the winners will head into the stands and move through the crowd along the Champion’s Pathway towards the television mixed zone, carrying their trophies with them.

The World Athletics Ultimate Championship has been created to settle the debate over who is the best athlete in the world in each discipline.

The inaugural edition will bring together world champions, Olympic champions, Wanda Diamond League winners and the year's highest-ranked athletes, all competing for the title of champion of champions.

Adding to the significance of the event is a historic $10 million prize pot, making the Ultimate Championship one of the most lucrative competitions in athletics.

The inaugural championship will take place in Budapest from September 11 to 13, with the new trophies serving as a distinctive symbol of the athletes who emerge at the top of the sport's newest global stage.