By GPC Sports Reporter
Kenyan distance stars Agnes Ngetich and Sabastian Sawe have been nominated for the 2026 World Athlete of the Year awards after outstanding seasons on the global athletics circuit.
Ngetich is among 10 nominees for the Women’s World Athlete of the Year award, while Sawe features in the 10-man shortlist for the men’s award.
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The nominees were selected by an international panel of athletics experts following a season that featured major performances at the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship, World Athletics Series events, one-day meetings and road races.
Ngetich has enjoyed one of the most remarkable seasons of her career, winning the world half marathon title by 50 seconds in a women-only world record of 1:05:15.
She also claimed the world cross-country title by 42 seconds and posted world-leading times of 8:08.95 over 3,000 metres and 28:58 for 10km.
Sawe, meanwhile, made history in the marathon by winning the London Marathon in a world record of 1:59:30.
The performance made him the first man to break the two-hour barrier in a record-eligible marathon, further strengthening Kenya’s dominance in long-distance running.
The Kenyan pair face strong competition from some of the biggest names in world athletics.
Among the women’s nominees are Ethiopian marathon star Tigst Assefa, who won the Berlin Marathon in 2:11:04 and the London Marathon in a women-only world record of 2:15:41.
American sprinter Melissa Jefferson-Wooden is also on the list after winning the sprint double at the Ultimate Championship and setting world-leading times of 10.62 in the 100m and 21.47 in the 200m.
The men’s list includes Swedish pole vault star Mondo Duplantis, who raised his own world record to 6.31m, as well as American sprinter Kenneth Bednarek, who won the Ultimate Championship 100m and 200m titles.
Brazil’s Alison dos Santos is another contender after setting a world 400m hurdles record of 45.80, while British middle-distance star Josh Kerr set a world mile record of 3:42.66.
World Athletics said the nominations reflected the standout performances of the season.
The final ranking will be determined through a four-way voting process, with each voting group contributing 25 per cent of the overall result.
The groups comprise World Athletics fans, athletes who competed at World Athletics Series events, accredited media and the wider World Athletics Family.
Voting closes on October 17 at midnight CEST.
The six finalists — three women and three men — will be announced on November 10 and 11 before they travel to Monaco for the World Athletics Awards on November 29.
The winners will be announced live at the awards ceremony, alongside other honours including the men’s and women’s Rising Star awards, Coach of the Year, the President’s Award and the new Moment of the Year award.
For Kenya, attention will be firmly on Ngetich and Sawe as the country seeks further recognition of its growing influence across global distance running.
