How much Mercy Oketch, Jacob Krop made from World Indoor Championships despite not winning

Kenyan duo Mercy Oketch and Jacob Krop still walked away with notable prize money from the World Athletics Indoor Championships from Friday 20 to Sunday 22 March in Torun, Poland, despite not clinching top honours.

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Oketch pocketed $6,000 (approximately Ksh774,000) after finishing fifth in the women’s 400m final, where she clocked a new national record of 51.25 seconds.

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Her performance not only secured her a place among the top six but also underlined her steady rise on the global stage.

Krop, meanwhile, earned $8,000 (approximately Ksh1,032,000) after finishing fourth in the men’s 3000m final.

Great Britain’s Josh Kerr took gold after clocking 7:35.56, cutting the tape ahead of American Cole Hocker (7:35.70) and Frenchman Yann Schrub (7:35.71), who took silver and bronze respectively.

According to World Athletics, the top six finishers in each event at the championships are entitled to prize money.

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Winners in each discipline receive $40,000 (Ksh5.16 million), while second and third-place finishers take home $20,000 (Ksh2.58 million) and $10,000 (Ksh1.29 million) respectively.

Athletes finishing fourth, fifth, and sixth earn $8,000 (Ksh1.03 million), $6,000 (Ksh774,000), and $4,000 (Ksh516,000).

Team Kenya’s campaign in Torun has once again highlighted a growing concern, with this now being the second year in a row that the national anthem has not been played at the championships.

At the previous edition in Nanjing 2025, Kenya endured a medal drought, with only three athletes advancing to the finals.

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This year in Kujawy Pomorze, only two athletes, Krop and Oketch, managed to reach their respective finals, but both were pipped in tightly contested races.

In the women’s 1500m, all eyes were on Susan Ejore, who, like in the previous edition, carried Kenya’s medal hopes into the final. However, she fell short of the podium, finishing fifth in a race that proved highly competitive.

Elsewhere, Brian Tinega also made the 400m final but finished eighth in 46.62 seconds. In the women’s 800m, Rosemary Longisa and Gladys Chepng’etich did not progress past the heats despite strong performances, while Festus Lagat missed out on the 1500m final after finishing seventh in his heat.