Kenyans Agnes Ngetich and Sabastian Sawe nominated for World Athlete of the Year

World Athletics on 6 October named Kenyans Agnes Ngetich and Sabastian Sawe among the nominees for its 2026 World Athlete of the Year awards. Ngetich is one of 10 women nominated and Sawe one of 10 men, according to the governing body's nominee list. The winners will be announced in Monaco on 29 November 2026.

Voting is split between four groups, each worth 25 per cent: World Athletics fans, athletes, media members and the World Athletics Family. Voting closes at midnight CEST on 17 October. The finalists in each category are due to be revealed on 10 and 11 November.

The Standard reported on 6 October that the 2026 awards use a new format, in which the 10 nominees in each category are cut to three finalists before one winner is chosen.

Ngetich is the reigning world cross-country champion. According to World Athletics, she won the women's half marathon at the World Athletics Road Running Championships in Copenhagen in September in 1:05:15, a world record for women-only races. The Standard said she also holds the world 10km record.

Sawe won the London Marathon in April in 1:59:30, a world record. Xinhua reported on 27 April that he was the first athlete to run a full marathon under two hours in an official race. The Standard said he beat the previous record by 65 seconds.

The other women nominated, with the countries given by World Athletics, are Tigst Assefa (Ethiopia), Chase Jackson (USA), Melissa Jefferson-Wooden (USA), Marileidy Paulino (Dominican Republic), María Pérez (Spain), Camryn Rogers (Canada), Masai Russell (USA), Audrey Werro (Switzerland) and Yan Ziyi (China). According to The Standard, their events are the marathon for Assefa, shot put for Jackson, 100 and 200 metres for Jefferson-Wooden, 400 metres for Paulino, race walking for Pérez, hammer throw for Rogers, 100 metres hurdles for Russell, 800 metres for Werro and javelin for Yan.

The other men are Kenneth Bednarek (USA), Kristjan Čeh (Slovenia), Andy Díaz Hernández (Italy), Alison dos Santos (Brazil), Mondo Duplantis (Sweden), Collen Kebinatshipi (Botswana), Josh Kerr (Great Britain & NI), Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage (Sri Lanka) and Ja'Kobe Tharp (USA). According to The Standard, their events are 100 and 200 metres for Bednarek, discus for Čeh, triple jump for Díaz Hernández, 400 metres hurdles for dos Santos, pole vault for Duplantis, 400 metres for Kebinatshipi, middle distance for Kerr, javelin for Pathirage and 110 metres hurdles for Tharp.