Technogym and World Athletics are teaming up to launch RUN X, the first-ever World Treadmill Championship taking place globally throughout 2026
One for the runners. Technogym – the world leader in wellness, athletic training, health, and the official supplier to the last 10 Olympic Games – and World Athletics, the global governing body for athletics, have announced a new partnership to launch RUN X, the first-ever World Treadmill Championship.
Designed to help make a global athletics championship more accessible in sports and fitness centres worldwide, this groundbreaking 5km competition is set to shake up the concept of running.
For more than 40 years, Technogym has been the leader in innovative, high-performance treadmills. Technogym is present in more than 50,000 fitness, wellness, and sports centres across 120 countries and boasts the world’s largest connected treadmill installed base.
The company has also long promoted its social campaign “Let’s Move for a Better World”, aimed at encouraging regular physical activity as a way to build a healthier and more sustainable planet.
RUN X stems from the shared vision of Technogym and World Athletics to leverage the universal popularity of running and make it accessible indoors – in fitness and sport centres – with total safety, comfort and no time or weather constraints.
How it works
The RUN X regulations and calendar will be announced in 2026, allowing fitness and wellness clubs to ‘affiliate’ and join the network hosting the first World Treadmill Championship.
This will give members the chance to compete against professional athletes via an online leaderboard displaying real-time rankings from participants across the globe.
The 5km results will be certified through treadmills connected to the Technogym Digital Ecosystem. The top-ranked participants in each country, categorised by age group, will then advance to regional championships to qualify for the world final.
The final will take place in an iconic location, where the world’s top 10 male and female runners will compete for the first-ever treadmill world title in an exciting and engaging format that takes running to a completely new level. RUN X will feature a significant prize pool for the winners, and World Athletics will also grant wild cards for some of its World Athletics Series events, such as the World Road Running Championships.
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said: “We are delighted to partner with Technogym, for the World Treadmill Championship Together, we aim to create a virtual competition space that builds a global community, entertains, and motivates amateur runners to compete and connect with a worldwide virtual community.
By combining the best of Technogym’s running technology with the reach and universality of athletics, this event promises to revolutionise the world of e-sports.”
Technogym Founder and CEO Nerio Alessandri added: “We are very proud of this partnership with World Athletics, which perfectly aligns with our long-term mission to engage more and more people in regular physical exercise.
RUN X will connect millions of runners with our partner fitness centres around the globe, while our exclusive Technogym Ecosystem will serve as the driving force behind this new competition – one that could become a new Olympic e-sport discipline.”
Further details to be announced in 2026.
