Track world championships the latest play by Orbán’s Hungary for global sports spotlight

By EDDIE PELLS and PAT GRAHAM
AP Sports Writers

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — A country spends millions to deliver a major international sports event to the world. That money buys a chance to project strength at home and abroad and maybe even glosses over that country’s oft-dissected shortcomings. That pattern has played out in China, Russia, Qatar and other countries in the recent past. The spotlight will shine on Hungary this month in a country led by a prime minister with authoritarian leanings and a shaky human-rights record. Budapest’s latest step starts Saturday with the opening of the nine-day track and field world championships. The sparkling National Athletics Center will host more than 2,000 athletes from over 200 countries in the biggest international sports event this side of the Olympics.