Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 30, 2026

Mercy Oketch

Mercy Oketch is a Kenyan sprinter. She is the Kenyan national record holder in the 400 metres both outdoors and indoors.

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Jul 30, 2026
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Mercy Oketch
Personal information
Born (2002-07-30) 30 July 2002
Sport
SportAthletics
Event
Sprint
Achievements and titles
Personal bests400 m: 50.14 (Nairobi, 2025) NR
Indoor
400 m: 51.53 (Metz, 2026) NR
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  Kenya
World Relays
Bronze medal – third place 2025 Guangzhou 4 × 400 m mixed

Mercy Oketch (born 30 July 2002) is a Kenyan sprinter. She is the Kenyan national record holder in the 400 metres both outdoors and indoors.1

Early life

Born in Kabobo village, Nyatike sub-county in Migori County, she was the third last in a family of seven siblings (three boys and four girls) with no one else in her family having a background in athletics. She attended Masara Primary School and then Radienya Primary School. She focused on football for a couple of years playing as a striker before switching back to athletics. She ran in the same school athletics relay team as Mary Moraa. She later transferred to transfer to Mogonga Girls School in Kisii. She has a younger sister who plays football with Bunyore Starlets.2

Career

She narrowly missed selection for the Kenya team after a photo-finish loss to Nelly Chepchirchir during the trials for the 2019 African U18 and U20 Championships in Athletics. However, that year she won the 400 metres at the national championships in Mombasa and was selected for the East African Secondary School Games (FEASSSA) in Arusha, Tanzania, where she won a silver in the 4 × 400 m relay.2

By 2023, she was coached by Josephine Nyarunda and ran for Kenya at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in the Mixed 4 × 400 metres relay in Budapest, running a 52.22 seconds split.2

She competed at the 2024 African Military Games in Abuja, Nigeria, where she won a silver medal in the 400 metres. Shortly afterwards she ran a personal best 51.80 seconds at the Nakuru AK meet, breaking the 52-second barrier for the first time.2 She lowered her personal best for the 400 metres to 51.64 in Nairobi in April 2025.3 She won a bronze medal with the Kenyan mixed 4 × 400 metres relay team at the 2025 World Athletics Relays in Guangzhou, China, also securing qualification to the upcoming World Championships.456 She ran a new personal best and Kenyan national record of 50.14 seconds to win the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi on 31 May 2025.7

In June 2025, she ran 50.32 seconds to win the women's 400m at the Kenyan National Championships.8 Subsequently, she was named in the Kenyan team for the individual 400 metres at the 2025 World Athletics Championships.9 She ran on the opening day in the mixed 4 × 400 metres relay but the Kenyan team was disqualified for a lane infringement.10 She was also a semi-finalist at the Championships in the women's 400 metres.11

Oketch set a Kenyan indoor national record for the 400 metres running 52.98 to win at Internationales Leichtathletik Hallen Meeting in Germany on 24 January 2026. On 6 February 2026, Oketch ran a new indoors 400 metres personal best of 52.25 on the World Athletics Indoor Tour in Madrid.She lowered the mark again shortly afterwards to 51.53 seconds 51.53 seconds in Metz, France.121314 Oketch was named in the Kenyan team for the 2026 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Toruń, Poland, where she reached the final of the 400 metres, becoming the first Kenyan woman to achieve that feat over 400 m at the World Indoors, and placed fifth overall.151617

In April 2026, she won in a season’s best of 50.17 seconds at the Kip Keino Classic ahead of American Paris Peoples.18 Later that month, she ran 35.77 seconds to win the 300 metres at the Simbine Classic in South Africa.19 Competing at the 2026 World Athletics Relays in Botswana, she was part of the Kenya mixed 4 x 400 metres relay team which set an African record of 3:09.87 on the opening day in May 2026.2021 The following month, she won the 400 m title at the Kenyan Championships in 51.14.22

Personal life

In 2023, she was recruited by the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) and she attended Recruits Training School in Eldoret as part of the Kenyan Air Force.2

References

References

  1. "Mercy Oketch". World Athletics. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
  2. Njoroge, Peter (13 May 2025). "Medal Heartbreak to Bronze Glory: Mercy Oketch's Stunning Rise in Sprinting". Athletics.co.ke. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  3. "Sprints Build-up & Trials for World Athletics Relays Championships". World Athletics. 12 April 2025. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  4. "World Athletics Relays". World Athletics. 11 May 2025. Retrieved 12 May 2025.
  5. "Focus shifts to Tokyo meet after Kenya's relay teams book slots". Standard Media. 11 May 2025. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
  6. Wanja, Charity (11 May 2025). "Kenya wins bronze, three teams qualify Tokyo". sjak.co.ke. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  7. "Nene smashes 44-second barrier in Nairobi". World Athletics. 31 May 2025. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  8. "Oketch, Mutinda and Cheruiyot impress at Kenyan Championships". World Athletics. 28 June 2025. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  9. Moses, Martin (22 July 2025). "World Athletics Championships: Faith Kipyegon, Omanyala, Chebet Lead Team Kenya to Tokyo". Toku.co.ke. Retrieved 22 July 2025.
  10. "World Athletics Championships, Tokyo 2025". World Athletics. 13 Sep 2025. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  11. "World Athletics Championships, Tokyo 2025". World Athletics. 13 Sep 2025. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
  12. "Meeting Metz Moselle Athlélor Crédit Mutuel". World Athletics. 8 Feb 2026. Retrieved 9 Feb 2026.
  13. "Serial 400m record breaker Mercy Oketch lights up indoor scene". Nation.Africa. February 10, 2026. Retrieved 10 Feb 2026.
  14. "Madrid Indoor thrills: Attaoui attacks world record, breaks European mark as world leads fall". Watch Athletics. 6 Feb 2026. Retrieved 8 Feb 2026.
  15. "Kenyan duo Oketch and Tinega qualify for final in World Athletics Indoor Championships". Nation.africa. 21 March 2026. Retrieved 21 March 2026.
  16. Cheruiyot, Bernard (5 March 2026). "Oketch, Kibet front Kenya's six-member team for World Indoors". Citizen.Digital. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  17. "World Athletics Indoor Championships". World Athletics. 20 March 2026. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
  18. "Rogers, Thomas and Pathirage break meeting records in Nairobi". World Athletics. 24 April 2026. Retrieved 24 April 2026.
  19. "PRUDENCE SEKGODISO LEADS SOUTH AFRICAN PODIUM SWEEP AT SUPERSPORT SIMBINE CLASSIC". gsport. April 29, 2026. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
  20. "World leads fall as 4x400m teams light up first round in Gaborone". World Athletics. 2 May 2026. Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  21. "World Athletics Relays". World Athletics. 2 May 2026. Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  22. "Odira and Cheruiyot book Commonwealth Games places at Kenyan Championships". World Athletics. 20 June 2026. Retrieved 25 June 2026.