New Athletics Event Launches in Budapest with $10m Prize Fund
Listen to the story
A new athletics competition, the World Athletics Ultimate Championship, has begun in Budapest. This report covers Day 1 of the event.
Organisers describe it as a brave new world for the sport. The championship offers a $10 million prize fund, a very large amount for track and field athletes.
The event includes new and unusual features. One example is glowing javelins, which are long spears thrown by athletes during competition.
British sprinter Amy Hunt is taking part. She has been called the sport's new sprint queen because of her recent success on the track.
Hunt says she is ready to challenge the best athletes in the world at this event. She will compete against top sprinters from many countries.
The championship is expected to attract strong interest because of its high prize money and new format. Organisers hope it will bring fresh excitement to track and field.
Fans who want to follow the action can watch through a livestream, which will let people watch the event live on the internet. World Athletics has said the livestream is coming soon.
The event forms part of a wider effort to modernise athletics and attract new audiences, combining traditional competition with new visual features like the glowing javelins.
Vocabulary10 words
- Ultimate Championship
- the name of a new sports competition
- prize fund
- total money given to the winners
- track and field
- sports such as running, jumping, and throwing
- javelin
- a long, light spear thrown in a sport event
- athlete
- a person who trains and competes in sports
- compete
- to take part in a contest against others
- livestream
- a video shown live over the internet
- organiser
- a person or group that plans an event
- modernise
- to make something more new and up to date
- format
- the way an event is planned or structured
Quiz
Answer key
1. — 2. It is a very large amount, $10 million 3. True
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
A new athletics competition, the World Athletics _____ Championship, has begun in Budapest.
Organisers describe it as a brave new world for the sport. The championship offers a $10 million _____ fund.
The event includes new and unusual features. One example is glowing _____, which are long spears thrown by athletes.
British sprinter Amy Hunt is taking part. She has been called the sport's new sprint _____.
Hunt says she is ready to _____ the best athletes in the world at this event.
Fans who want to follow the action can watch through a _____, which will let people watch the event live.
The event forms part of a wider effort to _____ athletics and attract new audiences.
Discussion questions
- Why do you think organisers created a new championship with such a large prize fund?
- What effect might new features like glowing javelins have on fans watching the sport?
- Do you think higher prize money will attract more top athletes to compete? Why or why not?
- How important is it for traditional sports like athletics to introduce new formats?