Mondo Duplantis Just Turned Budapest Into a Music Video, and It’s the Perfect Hype for September

If you needed one more reason to be excited about visiting Budapest this September, pole vault legend Armand “Mondo” Duplantis just handed you one wrapped in a music video. The two-time Olympic champion and world record holder has released an original song called “Gold,” and he shot the official video right here in Budapest, weaving the city’s most iconic landmarks into the countdown to the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship.

A Song Written for a Brand-New Kind of Championship

“Gold” is the official anthem of the Ultimate Championship, and Duplantis didn’t just lend his name to it, he wrote and performed the track himself alongside collaborators Carl Silvergran and Oscar Chase, with production by Chase. It’s not his first rodeo in a recording studio either. Working between Stockholm and Louisiana, where he grew up, Duplantis has quietly built a music career alongside his athletics one, racking up more than 11 million streams and landing a deal with Sony Music Sweden.

Mondo - Gold

Speaking about the track, Duplantis explained the idea behind it: “I wrote the song around representing something that’s a lot bigger than yourself. I think that’s what we all do when we’re on the track. We represent our family, our team, our coaches, and I love that concept. Music and sports are the two things that bring people together in the best way, and Gold is an expression of that.” World Athletics President Sebastian Coe echoed that sentiment, calling Duplantis “one of our most recognisable and accomplished athletes” and praising the choice to have him create an anthem that “serves to inspire our audiences and fans across the world.”

Budapest Isn’t Just the Backdrop, It’s the Co-Star

What makes this video particularly exciting if you’re planning a trip to Budapest is just how central the city itself is to the story. The clip was filmed at some of the capital’s most photogenic spots, including Fisherman’s Bastion, with its fairy-tale turrets overlooking the Danube, the grand Hungarian Parliament Building, and Heroes’ Square, the vast plaza dedicated to Hungary’s history. These aren’t random tourist stops thrown in for scenery either. The video blends footage from these locations with rare personal archival clips of Duplantis as a child and young athlete, set against some of the biggest triumphs of his career, creating a genuinely emotional through-line rather than just a highlight reel.

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He’s not alone in the celebration either. The video features family, friends, fellow pole vaulters, and other track and field superstars including Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, Tara Davis-Woodhall, Letsile Tebogo, and Noah Lyles, all sharing in moments of triumph. For anyone who loves spotting familiar places in music videos, walking past Fisherman’s Bastion or through Heroes’ Square this autumn is going to feel a little different knowing an Olympic champion filmed his anthem there just weeks earlier.

Why This Matters for Your September Trip

Gold is set to become the signature sound of the Ultimate Championship, woven into both the TV broadcast and the live stadium experience, so you’ll hear it constantly if you’re anywhere near the action. But the real treat is saved for the very end. Duplantis will perform “Gold” live inside the stadium on Sunday, September 13, closing out the championship in person, which means anyone with a ticket for the final session gets a genuine concert moment on top of watching world-class athletics.

The Ultimate Championship itself runs from Friday, September 11 through Sunday, September 13, 2026, at the Gyula Zsivotzky National Athletics Centre, a striking riverside stadium on the eastern bank of the Danube in the southern part of the city, built originally for the 2023 World Athletics Championships. It’s easy to reach by tram lines 1 and 2 or the H6 and H7 suburban railway, roughly 15 to 20 minutes from central Budapest. This is a brand-new, invitation-only event held every two years, bringing together Olympic and world champions, Diamond League winners, and the season’s top-ranked athletes to settle, once and for all, who deserves the title of champion of champions, backed by a historic $10 million prize pool.

Each of the three evenings runs as its own ticketed session, so you can catch a single night or follow the whole event. Friday’s session opens with early finals including the pole vault, one of the tournament’s marquee events given Duplantis’s own history in the discipline. Sunday is shaping up to be the biggest night of all, packed with eleven finals including the mixed 4x400m relay, plus, of course, that live performance of “Gold” to send the whole championship off in style. Ticket prices start at around 15,000 forint (roughly €41) for standard categories, climbing toward premium Finish Line seats, and they’re on sale now, so if you’re planning to be in town, it’s worth booking sooner rather than later.

Whether you come for the pole vault, the sprint finals, or simply to hear an Olympic champion sing his own anthem in the stadium where he might just add another gold to his collection, Budapest this September is shaping up to be one part world championship, one part concert, and entirely worth the trip.