Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
Masai Russell secured the 100m hurdles title at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship Budapest with a time of 12.22 seconds on Friday (11), continuing her exceptional season. She entered as the favourite after breaking the world record with 12.09 seconds in Zurich at the end of August and maintained her unbeaten streak to claim the inaugural Ultimate crown in the Hungarian capital.
Russell finished ahead of Nigeria’s former world record-holder Tobi Amusan, who ran 12.34 seconds, and European champion Nadine Visser, who clocked 12.39 seconds. This win marked Russell’s 14th victory of the season and her ninth race under 12.30 seconds. Her 12.22 time is the joint seventh fastest in her career, bettered by only five other athletes in history.
Reflecting on her performance, Russell said the world record was “just something to say” and emphasized the importance of approaching each race independently. She also noted the mental challenge of the event, stating that getting over ten barriers requires a different mindset.
This triumph was significant for Russell due to her experience at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, where she was unable to finish her semifinal after hitting a hurdle. She called this win a way to "rewrite the story" and highlighted that her previous setback was not a failure but a setup for later success. She has since become a record-holder and Olympic champion.
The race featured a strong start from world indoor record-holder Devynne Charlton, who hit the seventh hurdle and fell back to fourth. Russell won her semifinal in 12.38 seconds ahead of Visser, while Charlton won the second semifinal from Amusan. Jamaica’s Danielle Williams, the world titleholder from three years prior, did not advance, finishing fifth in her heat.