Kenya's challenge in 2026 World Indoor Championships comes a cropper

All eyes were on 400m star Mercy Oketch and world 5000m silver medallist Jacob Krop on day two of the 2026 World Indoor Championships in Poland on Saturday.

But the two Kenyan athletes, who flew the country’s flag in 400m and 3000m finished fourth and fifth respectively in highly competitive showdowns, which came to a close last evening in Kujawy Pomorze.

Other Kenyan flag bearers, Rosemary Longisa and Gladys Chepngetich started on the wrong footing in their debuts, bowing out of the women’s 800m title contention on day one (Friday). They both finished a disappointing fifth in Heat 1 and 2 respectively.

Despite a fifth place in the women’s 400m race, Oketch set a new indoor national record after clocking 51:25, lowering the previous 51:53, which she recorded at the Metz Moselle Athlélor meeting in France earlier in the year.

The women’s 400m race was won by 20-year-old Czech sensation Lurdes Gloria Manuel, who timed 50.76 in a race run on a new design where a final is split into two.

Oketch placed third in final two behind overall winner Manuel and Wadeline Venlogh of Haiti (51.07), and ahead of Spain’s Blanca Hervas, who set a personal best of 51.43.

According to World Athletics, an innovation designed to avoid awkwardly tight running for some athletes saw the 400m final become a drama in two parts, with the two top qualifiers and the next two fastest taking part in different races of four.

Krop, the solo Kenyan in the men’s 3000m finished fourth in the Saturday night final won by Great Britain’s Josh Kerr.

USA’s Cole Hocker took the lead after a quick start from South Africa’s Luan Munnik.

The Olympic 1500m and world 5000m champion was followed by Uruguay’s Valentin Soca and Ethiopia’s Addisu Yihune.

Yihune, accompanied by his compatriot Getnet Wale, moved to the fore after the third lap. As the race entered its last two laps, it turned more blistering as Hocker joined the leaders alongside his countryman Yared Nuguse.

Last evening, hopes were on Susan Ejore who had sailed to the final of the women’s 1500m. World Indoor silver medallist Noah Kibet bowed out of title contention at the semi-finals on day two.