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The female 100m title race will take center stage on the inaugural day of competition at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics as part of planners' strategies to “start with excitement”.

The unanticipated choice, which will lead to each heat of the 100m occurring on the single day, was praised by American track athlete Sha’Carri Richardson, who stated that it indicated “track and field is having its moment”.

The UK’s Dina Asher-Smith endorsed the switch for the Olympics, set from July 15th to 30th. “What an inspiring moment – marking the sustained heritage, power, and international reach of female sprinters, precisely one hundred years after their Olympic debut,” she noted.

While sprinters normally race no more than twice per day, the sport’s governing body confirmed it had engaged extensively with competitors to ensure they supported the arrangement.

“Hosting the premier event on the opening evening at the iconic LA Memorial Coliseum – when we explained it to competitors, they were thrilled,” noted Janet Evans, the Games’ chief athlete officer. “Most athletes told me: ‘Simply inform me. Give me advance notice, and I’ll prepare to race three 100-meter events in a single day.’”

World Athletics clarified it had carefully structured the schedule to enable as many competitors as possible to “double up”, not only in disciplines including the 100m and 200m but also the 800m and 1500m and the 1500m and 5,000m. Officials confirmed that there would be 10 days’ worth of events at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, with a co-ed sprint relay being introduced, as well as three days of street competitions at the end of the Olympics.

“We’ve developed a track and field schedule that kicks off spectacularly with female sprinters in the spotlight on the first day,” stated Seb Coe, World Athletics president. “This programme blends creativity with respect for customs, featuring the men’s marathon on the closing day.”

Nonetheless, the agenda makes it unlikely that US sprinter Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone can run in both the 400m and the 400 hurdles, because the 400m hurdles semi-finals and the 400m final are on the same day.

Aquatics has customarily started the Olympics. But as it is taking place in SoFi Stadium, which hosts the opening ceremony, it will now start in the following week.

Officials further stated that the first day will showcase the highest number of female championship events ever in a 24-hour period in Games’ history, with the women’s triathlon gold medal among those up for grabs. Additionally, they planned a mega Saturday on the second-to-last day, with 26 titles across 23 disciplines at stake.

An LA28 official, the head of sport and games delivery for LA28, noted the goal is to offer approximately 14,000,000 passes across 51 Olympic sports at 49 sites, with public availability starting in April 2026. Ferguson also confirmed that planners would not employ the disputed variable pricing strategy that caused anger among music enthusiasts this past summer and experimented with by the football governing body at football’s Club World Cup in the United States.