Sabastian Sawe during the London Marathon/ FILEMen’s marathon world record holder Sebastian Sawe and newly crowned world half marathon champion Agnes Ng’etich are in the running for more honours after earning nominations for the World Athletics Athlete of the Year awards.
Sawe faces a star-studded men’s field that includes World 100m and 200m champion Kenneth Bednarek of the USA, Diamond League discus champion Kristjan Ceh of Slovenia, Italian triple-jump star Andy Diaz Hernandez and world 400m hurdles record holder Alison Dos Santos of Brazil.
The other nominees are pole vault world record holder Mondo Duplantis, Botswana’s 400m star Collen Kebinatshipi, world mile record holder Josh Kerr, Diamond League javelin champion Rumesh Pathirage of Sri Lanka and world 110m hurdles record holder Ja’Kobe Tharp of the USA.
Sawe earned his nomination after making history at the London Marathon on April 26, becoming the first man to break the two-hour barrier in a 42km race when he clocked 1:59:30. The Kenyan shattered the previous world record of 2:00:35 set by his compatriot Kelvin Kiptum at the 2023 Chicago Marathon.
A win would see Sawe add another major accolade to his collection after he was named the 2025 World Athletics Out-of-Stadium Athlete of the Year. That award followed a dominant 2025 campaign in which Sawe remained unbeaten in his two marathon appearances.
He won the London Marathon in April in 2:02:27, more than a minute clear of his rivals in only his second marathon, before lowering the world-leading time to 2:02:16 in Berlin five months later.
Ng’etich, meanwhile, faces equally formidable opposition in the women’s category, with women-only world marathon record holder Tigst Assefa, American shot-put star Chase Jackson, World 100m and 200m champion Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, Dominican Republic 400m star Marileidy Paulino and world half marathon race-walk record holder Maria Perez among the nominees.
The field also includes Olympic and world hammer throw champion Camryn Rogers of Canada, world 100m hurdles record holder Masai Russell, Diamond League 800m champion Audrey Werro and Chinese javelin star Yan Ziyi. Ng’etich has enjoyed a remarkable 2026 campaign, excelling across cross country, road running and track.
She opened the year by claiming her maiden senior world title at the World Cross Country Championships in Tallahassee, Florida, on January 10, winning the 10km race in 31:28. Her winning run continued at home in the Sirikwa Classic Cross Country Tour on February 14, where she dominated the women’s 10km in 32:28.
She suffered a rare setback at the New York Half Marathon on March 15, finishing 13th in 1:10:25, but responded strongly with back-to-back 10km victories in Lille, where she clocked 28:58 on April 4, and New York, where she ran 30:07 on June 6. Ng’etich then switched to the track and won the 3,000m at the Monaco Diamond League on July 10 in 8:08.95.
She secured her second global title of the year at the World Road Running Championships in Copenhagen, Denmark, where she stormed to victory in the half marathon in a women-only world record of 1:05:15.
The performance saw her slash 61 seconds off the previous women-only world record of 1:06:16 set by compatriot Peres Jepchirchir at the 2020 World Half Marathon Championships. Both Sawe and Ng’etich will now hope their remarkable seasons are rewarded with the sport’s top individual honour.
