Eleven winners from the 2026 World Athletics Indoor Tour have earned wild card entries to the World Athletics Indoor Championships Kujawy Pomorze 26. The final Gold level meeting of the tour, the Orlen Copernicus Cup, took place in Toruń, Poland, on February 22. These wild cards allow some national teams to include a third athlete in select disciplines.
The 2026 World Athletics Indoor Tour concluded with the Orlen Copernicus Cup at the Kujawsko-Pomorska Arena Toruń on Sunday, February 22, the same venue set to host the World Indoor Championships from March 20-22. Eleven athletes claimed series victories in rotating disciplines, securing wild card places for the championships. Each winner also receives a US$10,000 bonus.
In the women's events, Lieke Klaver of the Netherlands won the 400m, Birke Haylom of Ethiopia took the 1500m, Devynne Charlton of the Bahamas prevailed in the 60m hurdles, Maria Żodzik of Poland cleared the high jump title, and Larissa Iapichino of Italy captured the long jump. On the men's side, Ackeem Blake of Jamaica won the 60m, Eliott Crestan of Belgium the 800m, Tshepo Tshite of South Africa the 3000m, Sondre Guttormsen of Norway the pole vault, Yasser Mohammed Triki of Algeria the triple jump, and Jordan Geist of the United States the shot put.
These wild cards enable national federations to enter a third athlete per nation in these disciplines, beyond the usual limit of two, though final selections rest with the federations. The championships will feature strengthened fields as a result.
At the same meeting, Botswana's Tshepiso Masalela was disqualified from his victory in the men's 1500m for unsportsmanlike behavior, specifically pointing a finger gun at competitors. World Athletics rules under Technical Rule 6 prohibit such gestures deemed provocative. The decision has sparked debate, with some criticizing it while others support enforcement of fair play standards, citing past examples like Usain Bolt's defense of similar actions in 2021.
