IAAF releases list of finalists for Athlete of the Year
The International Association of Athletics (IAAF) released the list of finalists for Athlete of the Year on Wednesday, 20 October. American sprinter, Tyson g*y, and Croatian high jumper, Blanka Vlasic, are the favourites to win.
g*y won the 100m Diamond Trophy with three race wins, including the final in Brussels.
Vlasic took first in every high jump competition in this year’s Diamond League season on route to winning the high jump Diamond Trophy. She also won the IAAF World Indoor Championship, the European Athletics Championship and the Continental Cup.
For the men, American athletes on the list include shot putter Christian Cantwell; middle and long distance runner Bernard Legat; and 110m hurdler David Oliver.
France has two athletes on the list: sprinter Christophe Lemaitre, who was recently named Europe’s athlete of the year; and triple jumper Teddy Tamgo.
Australian pole vaulter Steven Hooker made the list, as did Kenyan David Rudisha, who set the world record in the 800m earlier this season; Ertrean long distance runner Zersenay Tadese; and Norwegian javelin thrower Andreas Thorkildsen.
On the women’s side from North and South American, the list includes: Jamaican sprinter Veronica Campbell; American hurdler Allyson Felix; and Brazilian pole vault jumper Fabiana Murer.
From the rest of the world: Kenyan 3000m steeplechase runner Milcah Chemos Cheywa; British heptathlon athlete Jessica Ennis; Ethiopian long-distance runner Meseret Defar; shot putter Nadezhda Ostapchuk of Belarus; triple jumper Olga Rypakova from Kazakhstan;
and Polish hammer thrower Anita Wlodarczyk.
Sprinter Usain Bolt won the past two IAAF male Athlete of the Year awards for Jamaica, and Sanya Richards, a 400m and 4x400m relay runner from the United States, won the 2009 award for the women.
A vote will take place to determine the winner on 7 November. The winners will be announced on 21 November at an IAAF ceremony.
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