National 400m record holder Mercy Oketch, who was one of the eight Kenyans privileged to compete at the highly-anticipated World Athletics Ultimate Championship is not pleased with her performance and has promised a better season in 2027.Download our Mozzart Sport App for more newsOketch, who raced to a 50.17 seconds season best back in April at the Kip Keino Classic had a tough outing in Budapest, finishing eighth in her semi-final heat in 52.94 seconds."It wasn't that good of a race for me but we always strive to do our best. I thought I would have a good outing despite a troublesome hamstring ahead of the championship, but I'm glad it didn't get worse. I gave the race my best," she told MakingofChampions on Instagram.##NAJAVA_MECA_9952666##She has had a long season that started with the World Indoor season and believes that making the 16-person invitation list to the Ultimate Championship is an indication of good things to come."I feel good having competed here. It has been a long season, with the World Indoors, World Relays, the Commonwealth Games in between and I have done a lot of races. The time I have posted here is not good. That's not me. I will give my body a break before going back to training, trust the process and come back better." Asked what her 2027 plan entails, Oketch is looking to bouncing back and chase World Athletics Championship qualification early. "The qualification mark for 400m is no mean feat so I have to keep working to achieve it early," she concluded.Ewoi summoning Brussels form ahead of Ultimate Championship showdownThe 400m indoor and outdoor national record holder enjoyed a groundbreaking indoor campaign in early 2026, lowering Kenya's short-track national records multiple times. In Chemnitz, Germany, she opened her season in January with a victory, clocking 52.98 seconds and continued her stellar show at the World Indoor Tour in Madrid where she secured third place in 52.25 seconds. She won her heat in Metz, France, in 51.53s.At the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Toruń, Poland, Oketch became the first Kenyan woman in history to reach the indoor 400m final, finishing fifth overall while shattering the national indoor record with a blistering time of 51.25 seconds.##NAJAVA_MECA_9952681##Transitioning outdoors, she maintained her elite form across individual and relay disciplines, successfully claiming the 400m title on home soil at the Kip Keino Classic where she ran her outdoor season's best at Nayo Stadium.At the World Athletics Relays in Botswana, she co-anchored the Kenyan mixed 4×400m relay team to a phenomenal African and National Record of 3:09.87.After dominating the Athletics Kenya National Championships and Commonwealth Games Trials, winning the national title in 51.14 seconds, she narrowly missed out on the Games final after placing third in her semifinal heat with a time of 52.85 seconds.Kenyan youngster athlete signs professional deal with Swiss sports brand
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