The quirky event at Gawthorpe, near Wakefield, attracts TV coverage and sees hundreds of fans cheering on entrants hauling sacks of coal across the village.
This year TV presenter Ben Fogle took part in the demanding 32kg men's race and local man Phil Chinsley was filmed for TV show Gladiators.
But the race, first run in 1960, now faces being abandoned after the main sponsor pulled out, blaming the current economic crisis.
Already 15 competitors had applied to compete in the championships, traditionally held on Easter Monday, but organisers now have a race against time to secure funds to hold the event.
The race sees muscle-bound men and women carrying the heavy sacks of coal from the town's Royal Oak pub to the maypole on the village green – a distance of around a mile.
Organiser Susan Walshaw said: "We are now in dire straits and desperate to find another sponsor.
"I am not just saying this - without the funding the event couldn't go ahead.
"It looks like the crisis in the economy has had a knock-on effect on our funding, but it is a brilliant social event for our village. It would be tragic for Gawthorpe if the event did not go ahead."
Local brewery HB Clark and co had backed the event for many years, but managing director David Garthwaite said: "We have always had a wonderful relationship with the coal race but unfortunately we have decided to go down a different avenue.
"We feel we have gone as far as we can."