Collen Kebinatshipi has been shortlisted among the 10 nominees for the prestigious 2026 Men’s World Athlete of the Year award after producing one of the most remarkable seasons of his young career.
World Athletics announced the 10-man shortlist on Tuesday, with Kebinatshipi earning recognition after dominating the men’s 400m throughout the season.
The 22-year-old world champion has enjoyed a stellar campaign, winning both the World Athletics Ultimate Championship and the Diamond League 400m title.
His season reached another level in Budapest last month when he stormed to victory at the inaugural Ultimate Championship in 43.39 seconds, setting another Botswana national record and moving to fifth on the world all-time list.
Kebinatshipi produced an aggressive start in the final, powering through the first 300 metres before holding off a world-class field to claim the title in one of the fastest 400m races ever recorded. He finished ahead of American Rai Benjamin and Trinidad and Tobago’s Jereem Richards. Kebinatshipi is among a star-studded list of nominees that includes Olympic champions, world champions and world record holders.
The performance also extended his record for the most sub-44-second races by an athlete in a single season to six. Kebinatshipi’s nomination follows a season in which he established himself as the dominant force in the men’s 400m. He went unbeaten across six Diamond League meetings and secured the Diamond League title in Brussels, where he clocked 43.40 seconds to break the Diamond League record for the third time during the season.
His consistency has also seen him rise to the top of the current World Athletics men’s 400m rankings. World Athletics lists his personal best at 43.39 seconds, achieved in Budapest on September 12. He also helped Botswana set an African record in the men’s 4x400m relay earlier in the year.
The Ultimate Championship victory provided a fitting climax to his campaign.
Kebinatshipi produced an aggressive start in the final, powering through the first 300 metres before holding off a world-class field to claim the title in one of the fastest 400m races ever recorded. He finished ahead of American Rai Benjamin and Trinidad and Tobago’s Jereem Richards. Kebinatshipi is among a star-studded list of nominees that includes Olympic champions, world champions and world record holders.
The nomination is not the final stage of the process. World Athletics has revamped the voting system for the 2026 awards, with the 10 nominees in each category now competing for three finalist positions.
American Kenneth Bednarek, Slovenian discus star Kristjan Čeh, Italy’s triple jumper Andy Díaz Hernández, Brazilian 400m hurdles world record-holder Alison dos Santos, Swedish pole vault superstar Mondo Duplantis, Britain’s Josh Kerr, Sri Lankan javelin thrower Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage, Kenyan marathon record-holder Sabastian Sawe and American hurdler Ja’Kobe Tharp make up the remainder of the men’s shortlist. Kenya’s Sawe is the other African representative in the men’s category after becoming the first man to run a record-eligible marathon in under two hours, clocking a world-record 1:59:30 in London. The nomination is not the final stage of the process. World Athletics has revamped the voting system for the 2026 awards, with the 10 nominees in each category now competing for three finalist positions.
The final vote will involve four groups, each contributing 25 percent: World Athletics fans, athletes competing in World Athletics Series events, accredited media, and the wider World Athletics family. The six finalists, three men and three women, will be announced on November 10 and 11, with the eventual winners crowned at the World Athletics Awards in Monaco on November 29,2026.
