The inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship gets underway in Budapest, Hungary, today, Friday, September 11, with no Ghanaian athlete in the field.
The three-day, season-ending event brings together 381 athletes from 65 countries, including Olympic and world champions, as well as Diamond League winners.
Ghana’s absence follows a difficult season for several of the leading athletes, who failed to secure invitations to the elite field. Africa, however, will have a strong presence, led by several of the continent’s top sprinters and 400 metre specialists.
Nigeria’s Kanyinsola Ajayi will compete in the men’s 100 metres after a breakthrough season. Ajayi ran a personal best of 9.84 seconds to win the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene in July, beating reigning world champion Oblique Seville. He later finished fourth in the Diamond League final in Silesia in 9.94 seconds.
Cameroon’s Emmanuel Eseme will also contest the 100 metres. Eseme set a national record and personal best of 9.83 seconds to win the Commonwealth Games title in Glasgow. He finished second behind Seville in the Diamond League final in Brussels in 9.93 seconds before running 9.99 seconds in Silesia.
South Africa’s Akani Simbine completes the African line-up in the 100 metres. The veteran sprinter remains one of Africa’s most consistent sub-10-second performers and clocked 9.96 seconds to finish seventh in Silesia.
In the men’s 400 metres, Botswana will be represented by Lee Bhekimpilo Eppie and reigning world champion Collen Kebinatshipi, with South Africa’s Zakithi Nene also in the field.
Eppie won the 2026 African Championships title and has a season best of 44.50 seconds. He was also part of Botswana’s winning 4×400 metre relay team at the World Athletics Relays in Gaborone, which set a national and championship record of 2:54.47.
Kebinatshipi heads into the championship in outstanding form. He ran a Botswana and Diamond League record 43.40 seconds to win the final in Brussels last week.
The 22-year-old has also made history this season by running 9.89 seconds in the 100 metres, making him only the fourth man to break 44 seconds in the 400 metres and 10 seconds in the 100 metres.
Nene has also established himself among Africa’s leading 400 metre runners. He has a season best of around 44 seconds and helped South Africa win silver in the 4×400 metres at the World Athletics Relays with a national record of 2:55.07.
Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo will compete in the men’s 200 metres. The Olympic champion has a season best of 19.84 seconds, set in Oslo in June, and also won the Lausanne Diamond League in 19.87 seconds. He remains the African record holder with his 19.46 seconds from the Paris Olympics.
Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan is the lone African representative in the women’s 100 metre hurdles. Amusan ran 12.24 seconds at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, finishing second to American Masai Russell, and also won the African Championships title.
Her world record of 12.12 seconds, set in 2022, was broken this season when Russell ran 12.09 seconds in Zurich last month.
The Ultimate Championship is a new addition to the athletics calendar, designed to bring the world’s best athletes together for direct head to head competition at the end of the season.
The event features 28 disciplines, including 13 men’s events, 13 women’s events and two mixed relays. Unlike the traditional World Championships, there are no medals, with athletes competing for a share of a $10 million prize fund. Individual winners will receive $150,000, making it the richest event in athletics history.
For Ghana, the absence marks a disappointing end to the season. Across the continent, however, Ajayi, Eseme, Simbine, Eppie, Kebinatshipi, Nene, Tebogo and Amusan will carry African hopes as the new championship begins in Budapest.
