Noah Lyles Named Ultimate Star to Lead Show and Creative Vision at Budapest Championship

World Athletics has named Noah Lyles as an Ultimate Star for the inaugural Ultimate Championship, scheduled for 11 to 13 September in Budapest, Hungary.

The United States sprinter, who has claimed four straight 200-metre titles at the World Championships, is confirmed to race at the first staging of the new global meet. He has secured automatic entry in both the 100m and 200m through podium finishes at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25.

Beyond competition, Lyles will act as Ultimate MC and creative adviser for the championship. He is expected to help shape how the event is presented, joining World Athletics officials for planning talks on matters such as in-stadium fan engagement, how athletes are introduced, and award ceremonies.

He will also steer the creative vision for Club Ultimate, an athletes-only after-party tied to the meet. Lyles will influence the party’s atmosphere, music, visual style and catering during planning and on the night itself.

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said the governing body was thrilled to partner with Lyles, whom he described as among the sport’s greatest stars.

“The Ultimate is intended to give athletes a spotlight in the stadium while simultaneously offering a platform for their passions beyond the track. As with our previously announced Ultimate Stars, we worked closely with Noah to develop a framework that goes beyond an ambassadorship and enables him to apply his many talents to multiple aspects of this premiere event.”

Lyles has collected three Olympic medals and 10 from the World Championships in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay. He holds American records in the 200m at 19.31 seconds and in the 4x100m at 37.10, with his 200m mark ranking third on the all-time world list.

His public profile extends beyond the track through fashion, media and popular culture, experience organisers say fits the entertainment-led format of the new championship.

“I love the idea of the best athletes coming together to determine who is best of the best,” Lyles said. “My goal has been to have athletes have a real involvement in the development of the Ultimate Championship and the show we'll put on, and I feel like we've done that. I look forward to working with World Athletics to create an experience never seen before by fans or athletes. This will be a start in evolving the sport into a new age of sports and entertainment.”

Lyles lines up alongside Mondo Duplantis, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, Letsile Tebogo and Tara Davis-Woodhall as Ultimate Stars. Jamaican icon Usain Bolt holds the title of Ultimate Legend for the event.

The Ultimate Championship is designed to reshape the athletics calendar with a biennial contest that brings together world champions, Olympic champions, Wanda Diamond League winners and the season’s highest-ranked performers to decide an overall champion. Organisers have put forward a record prize fund of US$10 million.