Cross country senior men's race prize money
Jacob Kiplimo won the senior men's race at the 2026 World Cross Country Championships in 28:18 and took $30,000. The money runs six deep, $3,000 for 6th, and that $70,000 is the runners' own. A second ladder worth $70,000 pays the team standing, and that one is the federation's.
123 runners started in Tallahassee and 114 finished, from 40 countries. 17 teams were scored and six were paid. The race has been held twice, in Tallahassee 2026 and Belgrade 2024, and has paid $280,000 in all. The card is the same at both: $70,000 to the runners and $70,000 to the federations, every time. The championships put up $310,000 across the five races on the programme.
The 2026 race
Tallahassee, 10 January 2026
| POS | ATHLETE | COUNTRY | TIME | PRIZE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacob Kiplimo | Uganda | 28:18 | $30,000 |
| 2 | Berihu Aregawi | Ethiopia | 28:36 | $15,000 |
| 3 | Daniel Ebenyo | Kenya | 28:45 | $10,000 |
| 4 | Tadese Worku | Ethiopia | 28:49 | $7,000 |
| 5 | Ishmael Kipkurui | Kenya | 28:53 | $5,000 |
| 6 | Biniam Mehary | Ethiopia | 29:03 | $3,000 |
| 7 | Dolphine Chelimo | Uganda | 29:07 | — |
| 8 | Thierry Ndikumwenayo | Spain | 29:16 | — |
| 9 | Denis Kipkoech Kemboi Kipkemoi | Kenya | 29:18 | — |
| 10 | Keneth Kiprop | Uganda | 29:20 | — |
| 123 | started | 114 finished | — | $70,000 |
| POS | COUNTRY | POINTS | THE FOUR WHO SCORED | TO THE FEDERATION |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ethiopia | 30 | Berihu Aregawi 2nd, Tadese Worku 4th, Biniam Mehary 6th, Nibret Kinde 18th | $20,000 |
| 2 | Kenya | 34 | Daniel Ebenyo 3rd, Ishmael Kipkurui 5th, Denis Kipkoech Kemboi Kipkemoi 9th, Kevin Chepsergon Chesang 17th | $16,000 |
| 3 | Uganda | 39 | Jacob Kiplimo 1st, Dolphine Chelimo 7th, Keneth Kiprop 10th, Emmanuel Kibet 21st | $12,000 |
| 4 | United States | 81 | Parker Wolfe 12th, Wesley Kiptoo 14th, Graham Blanks 19th, Nico Young 36th | $10,000 |
| 5 | France | 92 | Yann Schrub 11th, Jimmy Gressier 15th, Etienne Daguinos 32nd, Valentin Gondouin 34th | $8,000 |
| 6 | Tanzania | 116 | Gabriel Gerald Geay 20th, Emanuel Dinday 23rd, Benjamin Ratsim 29th, Inyasi Nicodemus Sulley 44th | $4,000 |
| 7 | Spain | 116 | Thierry Ndikumwenayo 8th, Abdessamad Oukhelfen 22nd, Aarón Las Heras 30th, Jaime Migallon 56th | — |
| 8 | Australia | 119 | Ky Robinson 24th, Edward Marks 25th, Morgan McDonald 31st, Isaac Heyne 39th | — |
| 17 | teams scored | — | 40 countries ran | $70,000 |
Jacob Kiplimo took $30,000 for the win and the first six home shared $70,000. The team standing went to Ethiopia on 30 points, worth $20,000, and the six paid teams took $70,000 between them. The race and the standing went to different countries: a team title is won by four runners and an individual title by one.
The 2024 race
Belgrade, 30 March 2024
| POS | ATHLETE | COUNTRY | TIME | PRIZE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacob Kiplimo | Uganda | 28:09 | $30,000 |
| 2 | Berihu Aregawi | Ethiopia | 28:12 | $15,000 |
| 3 | Benson Kiplangat | Kenya | 28:14 | $10,000 |
| 4 | Nicholas Kimeli | Kenya | 28:16 | $7,000 |
| 5 | Samwel Chebolei Masai | Kenya | 28:18 | $5,000 |
| 6 | Joshua Cheptegei | Uganda | 28:24 | $3,000 |
| 7 | Sabastian Kimaru Sawe | Kenya | 28:31 | — |
| 8 | Gideon Kipkertich Rono | Kenya | 28:31 | — |
| 9 | Thierry Ndikumwenayo | Spain | 28:36 | — |
| 10 | Boki Diriba | Ethiopia | 28:38 | — |
| 121 | started | 106 finished | — | $70,000 |
| POS | COUNTRY | POINTS | THE FOUR WHO SCORED | TO THE FEDERATION |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenya | 19 | Benson Kiplangat 3rd, Nicholas Kimeli 4th, Samwel Chebolei Masai 5th, Sabastian Kimaru Sawe 7th | $20,000 |
| 2 | Uganda | 31 | Jacob Kiplimo 1st, Joshua Cheptegei 6th, Dan Kibet 11th, Hosea Kiplangat 13th | $16,000 |
| 3 | Ethiopia | 40 | Berihu Aregawi 2nd, Boki Diriba 10th, Tadese Worku 12th, Chimdessa Debele 16th | $12,000 |
| 4 | Spain | 99 | Thierry Ndikumwenayo 9th, Aarón Las Heras 17th, Fernando Carro 33rd, Miguel Baidal 38th | $10,000 |
| 5 | Australia | 106 | Haftu Strintzos 22nd, Edward Marks 23rd, Liam Adams 28th, Patrick Tiernan 29th | $8,000 |
| 6 | Eritrea | 113 | Abderezak Suleman 15th, Merhawi Mebrahtu 27th, Awet Habte 31st, Brhane Negasi Gebrekrstos 37th | $4,000 |
| 7 | United States | 120 | Anthony Rotich 21st, Emmanuel Bor 24th, Ahmed Muhumed 35th, Christian Allen 36th | — |
| 8 | South Africa | 141 | Bennett Seloyi 20th, Andries Sesedi 32nd, Nadeel Wildschutt 39th, Chris Mhlanga 46th | — |
| 15 | teams scored | — | 39 countries ran | $70,000 |
Jacob Kiplimo took $30,000 for the win and the first six home shared $70,000. The team standing went to Kenya on 19 points, worth $20,000, and the six paid teams took $70,000 between them. The race and the standing went to different countries: a team title is won by four runners and an individual title by one.
What each place is worth
Two ladders of the same size, paid to two different people
| PLACE | THE RUNNER GETS | THE FEDERATION GETS |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | $30,000 | $20,000 |
| 2nd | $15,000 | $16,000 |
| 3rd | $10,000 | $12,000 |
| 4th | $7,000 | $10,000 |
| 5th | $5,000 | $8,000 |
| 6th | $3,000 | $4,000 |
| The race | $70,000 | $70,000 |
The two ladders are worth the same $70,000 and they are not the same shape. The individual card puts 43% of its money on the winner; the team card puts 29% on the winning country and pays 6th $4,000. Winning the race is worth 1.5 times what winning the standing is, and the standing takes four runners to win. Neither ladder reaches past 6th, so 108 of the 114 who finished in Tallahassee were paid nothing at all, and so were eleven of the 17 teams that were scored.
What each country took from this race
$280,000 across the two championships
| # | COUNTRY | TO ITS RUNNERS | TO THE FEDERATION | TEAM TITLES | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Uganda | $63,000 | $28,000 | — | $91,000 |
| 2 | Kenya | $37,000 | $36,000 | 1 | $73,000 |
| 3 | Ethiopia | $40,000 | $32,000 | 1 | $72,000 |
| 4 | Spain | — | $10,000 | — | $10,000 |
| 5 | United States | — | $10,000 | — | $10,000 |
| 6 | Australia | — | $8,000 | — | $8,000 |
| 7 | France | — | $8,000 | — | $8,000 |
| 8 | Eritrea | — | $4,000 | — | $4,000 |
| 9 | Tanzania | — | $4,000 | — | $4,000 |
| 9 | countries paid | $140,000 | $140,000 | 2 | $280,000 |
Uganda has taken $91,000 of the $280,000 this race has paid, 32.5% of it. The two money columns are kept apart because they are not the same money: one is paid to a runner and is theirs, the other to a national federation. Uganda leads this race without ever having won the team standing in it, which is what an individual title being worth $30,000 against a team title's $20,000 does to a table. Six of the nine countries here hold federation money and nothing else: they put four runners in the first six teams without putting one in the first six of the race.
Everyone who ran the senior men's race
All 224 of them, across the two championships
- Jacob Kiplimo
- Berihu Aregawi
- Daniel Ebenyo
- Tadese Worku
- Ishmael Kipkurui
- Biniam Mehary
- Dolphine Chelimo
- Thierry Ndikumwenayo
- Denis Kipkoech Kemboi Kipkemoi
- Keneth Kiprop
- Yann Schrub
- Parker Wolfe
- Adriaan Wildschutt
- Wesley Kiptoo
- Jimmy Gressier
- Brian Fay
- Kevin Chepsergon Chesang
- Nibret Kinde
- Graham Blanks
- Gabriel Gerald Geay
- Emmanuel Kibet
- Abdessamad Oukhelfen
- Emanuel Dinday
- Ky Robinson
- Edward Marks
- David Mullarkey
- Shadrack Kipngetich Koech
- Simon Sundström
- Benjamin Ratsim
- Aarón Las Heras
- Morgan McDonald
- Etienne Daguinos
- Sanele Masondo
- Valentin Gondouin
- Bereket Nega
- Nico Young
- Fabien Palcau
- Evan Burke
- Isaac Heyne
- Gulveer Singh
- Deogracius Musobo
- Musawenkosi Mnisi
- Robert Kiprop Koech
- Inyasi Nicodemus Sulley
- Seth O'Donnell
- Ahmed Muhumed
- Toby Gualter
- Xavier Perras-Phaneuf
- Godwin Katakura
- Bennett Seloyi
- Ryuto Igawa
- Yuma Shimoo
- Matthew Ramsden
- Haftu Strintzos
- Assaf Harari
- Jaime Migallon
- Matt Talbot
- MacCallum Rowe
- Jayde Rosslee
- Sawan Barwal
- Philippe Morneau-Cartier
- Hiroto Yoshioka
- Tomas Vega
- Oliver Simon Diaz
- César Daniel Gomez Ponce
- German Vega
- Arturo Israel Reyna
- Derebe Ayele
- Adisu Guadia
- Wenliang Ma
- Jacob Cann
- Paul Ramirez
- William Little
- Omar Ramos
- John Nahhay Wele
- Yacine Guermali
- Daiki Ozawa
- Haoran Tang
- Rory Leonard
- Luis Alberto Orta
- Divan Du Plooy
- Karel Hussar
- Yeshnil Karan
- Mario López
- Abhishek Pal
- Jhon Andres Atachagua
- Bradley Makuvire
- Zayed Al Sayd
- Zhongping Chen
- Kristers Kudlis
- Manuel Rojas
- Santiago Gaitan
- Xing Liu
- Chris Mhlanga
- Munir Kabbara
- Taonga Mbambo
- Sadio Fenner
- Diego Adolfo Garcia
- Zade Kayyali
- Nelson Ito Ccuro
- Wenjie Wang
- Victor Hugo Aguilar Mamani
- Dilu Goiye Bob
- Weizheng Tian
- Gabriel Guzman
- Gaylord Silly
- Felice Covillon
- Ethan Yan
- Seng Tou Ip
- Iván Zarco
- Benjamin Ashkettle
- Charbel Sejaan
- Michel Simon Darazi
- Hugh Kent
- Uriel Rodrigo Muñoz
- Mohammed Ahmed
- Mezgebu Sime
- Oliver Chignell
- Connor Melton
- Omer Elfadi
- Dan Kibet
- Wayne Kabondo
- Rocky Hansen
- Benson Kiplangat
- Nicholas Kimeli
- Samwel Chebolei Masai
- Joshua Cheptegei
- Sabastian Kimaru Sawe
- Gideon Kipkertich Rono
- Boki Diriba
- Hosea Kiplangat
- Martin Magengo Kiprotich
- Abderezak Suleman
- Chimdessa Debele
- Leonard Chemutai
- Berehanu Tsegu
- Anthony Rotich
- Emmanuel Bor
- Getachew Masresha
- Will Barnicoat
- Merhawi Mebrahtu
- Liam Adams
- Patrick Tiernan
- Emile Hafashimana
- Awet Habte
- Andries Sesedi
- Fernando Carro
- Emmanuel Roudolff
- Christian Allen
- Brhane Negasi Gebrekrstos
- Miguel Baidal
- Nadeel Wildschutt
- Wellington Varevi
- Calum Johnson
- Kartik Kumar
- Andre Waring
- Hiroto Fujimagari
- Tom Evans
- Hugh Armstrong
- Zachary Facioni
- Anthony Camerieri
- Rafael Vicente Loza Bejarano
- Célestin Ndikumana
- Keelan Kilrehill
- Andrew Davies
- Reid Buchanan
- Filmon Kibrom
- Felicien Muhitira
- Nassim Hassaous
- Mathews Leeto
- Thomas Fafard
- Lionel Nihimbazwe
- Tomonori Yamaguchi
- Max Turek
- James Kingston
- Julio Chacon
- Ivo Balabanov
- Jean Marie Bukuru
- Aron Kifle
- Patrick Nimubona
- Scott Stirling
- Tomoya Ogikubo
- Ulises Martin
- Therence Bizoza
- Emmanuel Reyes
- Mike Tate
- Winer Canchanya
- Islam Amangos
- Chun Yin Tse
- Walter Nina
- Chun Khai Jon Lim
- Shaun Goh
- Hemraj Gurjar
- See Yeung Chong
- Miguel Ángel Barzola
- Deniss Šalkauskas
- Yannick Magnan
- Ming Wei Marcus Ong
- Tony Hanna
- Alexander Marusich
- Željko Dabović
- Samat Kazakbayev
- Evueli Toia
- Zoubaïrou Afiz
- Peni Bulikiobo
- Meng Tak Leong
- Pramesh Prasad
- Vishant Reddy
- Jeremiah Singh
- Rupeni Mataitoga
- Mehdi Frère
- Connor Black
- Michaël Gras
- Kabelo Mulaudzi
- Mohammad Karim Yaqoot
- Alex Kabambale Paluku
- Omar Abou Hamad
- Imad Jizzini
- Ali Alrida Kanaan
- Ali H. Mourtada
- Noel Hitimana
- Emmanuel Mutabazi
- Jean Claude Nsabimana
- Najmuddin Zuhurshohi
Every name here started the race or was named in a team, whether they were paid or not. 31 of the 224 have a page in this section, where their Diamond League earnings are counted to the dollar. The other 193 are here because they ran, which is the whole entry requirement: only six runners in each race went home with a cheque of their own.
Frequently asked questions
How much prize money does the senior men's race pay at the World Cross Country Championships?
Two separate ladders worth $140,000 between them. The runners take $70,000 of it, $30,000 for 1st, $15,000 for 2nd, $10,000 for 3rd, $7,000 for 4th, $5,000 for 5th and $3,000 for 6th, and that money is theirs. The team standing takes the other $70,000, $20,000 down to $4,000 for 6th, and that money is the federation's. Across the two championships the race has paid $280,000.
Who won the 2026 senior men's race and what did they take?
Jacob Kiplimo of Uganda, in 28:18, for $30,000. 123 runners started in Tallahassee and 114 finished. The team standing went to Ethiopia on 30 points, worth $20,000 to the federation, so the winner of the race and the winner of the standing were different countries.
How many places does the senior men's race pay?
Six runners and six teams. 6th in the race is worth $3,000 and 7th is worth nothing, in a race 114 people finished. Six teams are paid out of the 17 that were scored, so a country can be scored, beaten and paid on the same afternoon.
Who gets the team prize money in the senior men's race?
The federation, not the runners. A country's first four home are scored, their finishing places are added together and the lowest total wins, and the $20,000 for the title is paid to the national federation as one cheque. Ethiopia won the 2026 standing with a fourth scorer who finished 18th, a run worth $20,000 to the federation and nothing at all to Nibret Kinde.
Which country has won the most prize money in the senior men's race?
Uganda, on $91,000 of the $280,000 this race has paid out, 32.5% of it. $63,000 of it belongs to two of its runners and $28,000 to the federation. It has never won the team standing in this race: the money is two individual titles and the places behind them. 9 countries have been paid in this race.
Has anyone won the senior men's race more than once?
Jacob Kiplimo won it in 2024 and 2026, which is $60,000 from two runs. The championships are held every other year, so two titles is every edition there has been.
How many of these runners have run the senior men's race at both championships?
20 of the 224 named in the race across the two editions. Cross country is a winter championships held every other year, and a field turns over hard between stagings.
Is there a world record bonus in the senior men's race?
There is no such thing. Every cross country course is different, so there is no record to break and no bonus to pay: the card is the ladder and nothing else. A world record on the track at the World Championships adds $100,000 on top of the place money; here a winning run is worth $30,000 whatever the clock says.
Where to next
The rest of the athletics money
World Cross Country prize money holds every race on both programmes, the 65 countries that ran and the $620,000 the two championships put up. World Championships prize money is where the same distance runners are paid on the track, $70,000 for a title, and World Relays prize money is the other championship where the cheque never has a runner's name on it. Diamond League prize money is the circuit most of this field races all summer, and the one place their earnings are their own.