World Athletics

World Athletics is strengthening the role of Kids’ Athletics in delivering positive social and societal impact through its participation in the Global Sport for Good Initiative, a collaboration between the International Olympic Committee (IOC), World Athletics, World Rugby, FIBA and the Badminton World Federation. Implemented since 2024, the Global Sport for Good Initiative aims to harness the power of sport participation to enhance wellbeing, inclusion, education and community development, while strengthening the capacity of International Federations and their members to understand and demonstrate the impact of sport. For World Athletics, the focus is on its Kids’ Athletics programme to provide the platform through which these ambitions can be put into practice. Press release: bit.ly/4kgwaXN #WorldAthletics #GlobalSportForGood #SportForGood #kidsathletics #OC #FIBA #WorldRugby #BadmintonWorldFederation #FIBAFoundation #SportsParticipation #CollectiveAction

What are some of the world’s leading marathons doing to reduce their impacts on the environment and increase their social benefits? That’s what we’ll explore during our next Organisers Spotlight webinar where we’ll be joined by sustainability practitioners representing marathons from four continents: - Michael Fuchs, Sustainability Manager for the BMW Berlin Marathon - Martha Patricia Narváez García, Head Sustainability Consultant for the Mexico City Telcel and CAF Caracasmarathons, and - Rajesh Vetcha, Race Director for the NMDC Hyderabad Marathon. The Berlin Marathon has achieved Gold level recognition against the Athletics for a Better World Standard and the Mexico City, Caracas and Hyderabad events have achieved Silver. Some of the themes we’ll be covering: - How sustainability works ‘behind the scenes’ at events - How organisers are encouraging behaviour change at mass participation events - How to make a sustainability impact with a limited budget - How sustainability initiatives add value to an event 🗓️ Thursday 29 October ⏰ 4-4:45pm CET 💻 Online Join us! The registration link is in the comments!

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe has met with Kenyan President William Ruto in Eldoret as preparations start in earnest for the #WorldAthleticsChamps Nairobi 29 – the first edition of the sport's flagship event to be held on African soil. “I was delighted to meet His Excellency President Ruto in his home city of Eldoret – the City of Champions – and reassured by his personal commitment to ensuring the delivery of a successful first World Championships in Africa,” said Coe. Official press release 🔗 bit.ly/3TTDdLq

Submissions are now open for the World Athletics Photograph of the Year Award ✨ 👉 Learn more and submit your work: https:// bit.ly/47kOkQw #AthleticsAwards

Sport & Technology Innovation Workshop Two days of discussions brought together competition, broadcast, technology, communications, marketing, partners and suppliers to make athletics more compelling, accessible and engaging for fans. Presentations, debates and practical exchanges helped challenge ideas and connect initiatives. Discussions reviewed lessons from the Ultimate Championship and identified projects for our next events. What was discussed: Learning from Ultimate: The review covered competition formats, scheduling, athlete presentation, graphics and viewing experience. Key opportunities included better storytelling, clearer performance explanations and innovations that benefit athletes, broadcasters and fans. Turning Data into Stories: Project Athena could support commentators, broadcast graphics and digital platforms through contextual insights, alerts and automated storytelling, combining reliable data with editorial judgement. Bringing Fans Closer to the Action: Virtual Finish Line, athlete audio, augmented reality and new camera perspectives could highlight decisive moments and athlete performance. Other proposals focused on faster field results, clearer clocks and improved road-race coverage. Deepening Digital Engagement: Web and app initiatives included personalisation, notifications, live results, quizzes and prediction games. For China, priorities included local platforms, athlete stories, WeChat Mini Programs and connections between digital and live experiences. Improving Delivery: Discussions explored Beijing’s timetable, stronger field-event storytelling and more efficient coordination through the Event Requirements System 2.0. What was prioritised: Projects were grouped into four directions: Deploy, Prioritise Evaluation, Optional Enhancements and Future Exploration, balancing fan value, broadcast differentiation and delivery complexity. Moving from priorities to delivery: Next steps include assigning project leads, assessing feasibility, identifying dependencies, developing prototypes and setting decision points. Two key dependencies were highlighted: Instant field measurement: Coordination between Seiko, Technology and Competition, including protocols and potential rule implications. AI and editorial outputs: Collaboration between Technology, Deltatre, HBS and Communications/Marketing to support broadcast and digital needs. The workshop aligned priorities for Beijing 2027 and established a pipeline for future innovation. Success now depends on collaborative delivery that improves fans’ understanding, connection and enjoyment of athletics.

World Athletics takes seats at International Partnership Against Corruption in Sport On Friday 2 October 2026, the International Partnership Against Corruption in Sport - a multilateral initiative supported by more than 60 States, the IOC, the Council of Europe and the OECD - appointed World Athletics to a seat on its Steering Committee. Niels Lindholm, World Athletics' Compliance and Risk Officer, attended the IPACS General Assembly in Lausanne at IOC headquarters and was elected alongside Catherine Pitre to represent World Athletics in this important multilateral initiative. World Athletics joins the United Kingdom, Brazil, Morocco, the USOPC, the JOC, and the international bobsleigh and rowing federations to lead the IPACS work globally. This election recognises World Athletics’ top ranking position in the ASOIF Governance assessment and is testament of our leadership role in setting out business integrity standards across other ISFs and Major Sports Events.

The governance team is recruiting: two new members for our Nominations Panel   We’re pleased to announce that the application process is now open for two additional members to join our Nominations Panel. This is a great opportunity for individuals who are passionate about leadership, good governance, and helping shape the future of our organisation to contribute their expertise, insights, and perspectives.   We welcome applications from individuals who are committed to a fair, transparent, and inclusive nominations process and who are keen to make a meaningful contribution.   The application process is now open!

Despite missing the full 2026 season through injury, world and Olympic 4x100m champion Twanisha ‘TeeTee’ Terry found another way to be part of the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship. The US sprinter is also a children’s book author and she supported the event in Budapest by holding a book-signing session, gifting copies of her books to children participating in the Kids’ Athletics Ultimate Challenge. Led by Ultimate Stars Letsile Tebogo and Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, the activation formed part of The Day Before, a new-look pre-event media programme. “The Day Before was a lot of fun. I enjoyed watching Melissa and Letsile take part in the activation and engage with the children,” said Terry. “As athletes of their calibre, they have the power to make a difference and inspire young people to believe that they could one day follow in their footsteps.” Terry spent the rest of the weekend enjoying the new competition as a spectator and cheering on her teammates, including her close friend Jefferson-Wooden. “The atmosphere at the Ultimate Championship was amazing and the competition was phenomenal,” she said. “It was great to see my Star Athletics teammates put on a show, with Melissa and Kenny (Bednarek) both competing in the 100m and 200m and producing world-leading performances.” Read full feature here: https://lnkd.in/e7vSDStZ

World Athletics has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, strengthening its commitment to refugee athletes around the world 🌍 The agreement builds on years of collaboration to expand access to training and competition, strengthen protection and inclusion, and create more opportunities for refugee athletes and communities through athletics. Press release 🔗 bit.ly/4cPlnzw

World Athletics is proud to announce it has become signatory to the Sports for Nature Framework, a global initiative aiming to deliver transformative action for nature through sports 🌱 Launched in 2022, the framework sets out four key principles to help sport organisations protect and restore biodiversity and reverse nature loss: - to protect nature and avoid damage to natural habitats and species; -restore and regenerate nature wherever possible; - understand and reduce risks to nature in their supply chains; and - educate and inspire positive action for nature across and beyond sport. From 2027, all World Athletics Championship hosts will undertake biodiversity assessments as we continue to put nature at the heart of sustainable event delivery. Full press release 👉 bit.ly/4hechxv