Melissa Jefferson-Wooden wins inaugural Ultimate 100m title in Budapest

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden won the women’s 100 meters at the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship on September 12, 2026, in Budapest, Hungary, finishing in 10.62 seconds.

Julien Alfred of Saint Lucia finished second in 10.74 seconds, while American Sha’Carri Richardson was third in 10.76. The official result recorded a wind reading of -0.2 meters per second.

A high-profile final for a new championship

The final brought together three of the event’s most prominent contenders: Jefferson-Wooden, the reigning world champion; Alfred, the Olympic champion; and Richardson, the 2023 world champion. World Athletics described the race as an epic clash involving champions from the sport’s biggest recent competitions.

The World Athletics Ultimate Championship was held in Budapest from September 11 through September 13. The women’s 100-meter final gave the inaugural edition a clear marquee result, with Jefferson-Wooden becoming the event’s first champion in the discipline.

Jefferson-Wooden’s time in context

Jefferson-Wooden’s 10.62 was one hundredth of a second slower than the 10.61 she ran to win the 2025 world championship. World Athletics described the Budapest performance as the joint seventh-fastest women’s 100-meter time in history.

The mark was not a world record. It was, however, a major championship result produced in a slight headwind. Alfred finished 0.12 seconds behind Jefferson-Wooden, and Richardson was another 0.02 seconds back.

What the result establishes

For the new competition, the Budapest final provides an early defining result: Jefferson-Wooden is the inaugural Ultimate 100-meter champion after beating two internationally established rivals in one high-profile race.

The result also gives fans a straightforward benchmark for the championship’s first edition. The official order was Jefferson-Wooden first, Alfred second and Richardson third, with the times and wind conditions recorded in the results.

Sources

• World Athletics official women's 100 metres results
• NBC Sports results coverage