Sprint prodigy
Dennis Mwai
/ FILE
Young sprint prodigy Dennis Mwai has thrown down the gauntlet, declaring his intent to challenge for a place in Kenya’s 2026 Commonwealth Games squad as well as obliterate the national 200m record.
Next year’s Commonwealth Games are scheduled for July 23 to August 2 in Glasgow, Scotland. Mwai’s bold declaration comes on the back of his maiden global appearance in Kenyan colours during last month’s Tokyo World Championships.
The 20-year-old was named as a reserve in Kenya’s for- midable 4x100m relay squad in Tokyo. The team featured Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala, national champion Meshack Babu, veteran sprinter Boniface Mweresa, Steve Onyango, former national record holder Mark Odhiambo and African U20 100m champion Clinton Aluvi.
The quartet of Babu, Mweresa, Odhiambo and Onyango clocked 38.56 to finish sixth in their heat, narrowly missing out on a place in the final. Despite being a reserve, Mwai believes the experience gained in Tokyo has set the stage for a breakthrough 2026 season.
"Tokyo was a good experience for me. I got to see how elite athletes run and gained a lot of invaluable experience,” said Mwai in an exclusive interview with the Star. As he looks ahead to 2026, Mwai has revealed his intention to focus solely on the 200m.“In the coming season, I will be focusing more on the 200m,” he noted.
His decision to specialise in the half-lap sprint was inspired by conversations with world champion Noah Lyles and Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo during the World Championships.
“I talked to some of the world’s top athletes in Tokyo like Lyles and Tebogo, and they told me how to approach the 200m,” he added. Mwai will, however, continue to contest the 100m at Athletics Kenya weekend meetings to sharpen his speed.
“In AK weekend meetings, I will be doubling in the 100m and 200m, but at the national championships, I will only focus on the 200m, aiming for the national title,” he explained.
The youngster is also bullish about attacking the long-standing 200m national record of 20.14 seconds, held by Carvin Nkanata and set in 2015 in the USA.
“I’m also hoping to break the national 200m record and I believe it will work out,” he affirmed. Mwai, who currently boasts a personal best of 20.70 seconds achieved during the 6th AK meeting at the Ulinzi Sports Complex on May 15. His main target for 2026, however, remains earning a Commonwealth Games berth.
“I am hoping for a good 2026 season. Next year, there will be more surprises from me,” he said confidently. Mwai believes he is closing in on the Commonwealth Games entry standard of 20.60 seconds. “My target is to make Kenya’s team for the Commonwealth Games in the 200m because I’m very close to the entry standards,” he concluded.
Mwai has already started his preparations for an ambitious 2026 season. “I have already started my build-up for next year with loading, and by next year I hope my body will be in good shape,” he noted.
Under the guidance of coach Perpetual Mbutu of the Utawala Sprints Club, Mwai has switched his training to focus more on strength and explosive speed.
“In 2025,
I had not been doing some things necessary to build the body for
explosiveness.”
“I had not been
doing proper
gym work and
stretches, but as
I built up for the
2026 season, my
coach has been
guiding me adequately,” he said.
