Jefferson, Russell, and Werro make final shortlist for the Female Athlete of the Year award

American duo Melissa Jefferson-Wooden and Masai Russell, as well as Swiss Audrey Werro, have been confirmed as the three finalists for the 2026 Women’s World Athlete of the Year Award.

The gala will be held in Monaco on November 29th, when the winner will be unveiled.

Following a four-way vote by fans, athletes, members of the media, and the World Athletics Family, the three finalists topped the list of 10 nominees that had been selected by an international panel of athletics experts.

Jefferson bagged a sprint double win at the Ultimate Championship, besides setting world leads of 10.62 in the 100m and 21.47 in the 200m.

For her part, Russell also set a world 100m hurdles record of 12.09 and achieved nine of the 10 fastest times of the season before icing it by winning the Ultimate and Diamond League titles in 2026.

Werro also enjoyed a splendid season, winning the Ultimate Championship and Diamond League title in the 800m.

She also broke the Diamond League record three times, improving to a world lead of 1:53.70 – putting her third on the world all-time list.

Ethiopian Tigst Assefa finished 4th, ahead of Marileidy Paulino from the Dominican Republic and Kenya’s Agnes Ngetich, who finished 5th and 6th respectively.

As well as the awarding of the women’s and men’s World Athlete of the Year honours, other awards to be presented on stage in Monaco include the women’s and men’s Rising Star honours, Coach of the Year, the President’s Award and, for the first time, the Moment of the Year award.

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