World Athletics Awards | |
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Presented by | World Athletics |
First awarded | 1988 |
Website | https://worldathletics.org/awards |
The World Athletics Awards are annual awards to honor athletes participating in events within the sport of athletics. These are organised by World Athletics and include track and field, cross country running, road running, and racewalking.
The first athletes awarded World Athlete of the Year in 1988 were Americans, namely sprinter Florence Griffith-Joyner and track and field athlete Carl Lewis.
Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt is the only athlete to win the World Athlete of the Year Awards six times. Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva and Morocco's middle-distance runner Hicham El Guerrouj have won the main award three times. Swedish pole vaulter Armand Duplantis has also won the award three times including the inaugural World Athlete of the Year (Men's Field) award in 2023 after World Athletics Awards changed from crowning a sole male and female winner to issuing awards across six categories. [1] American track and field athlete Marion Jones, sprinter Sanya Richards-Ross representing the USA, Carl Lewis and other American sprinter Michael Johnson, Ethiopia's long-distance runner Kenenisa Bekele, Kenya's long-distance runner Eliud Kipchoge and Venezuela's triple-jumper Yulima Rojas have won the award twice each.
The Rising Star of the Year award was inaugurated in 1998, when Great Britain's sprinter Christian Malcolm was awarded. The first woman to be voted was 400 m and 400 m H specialist, Jana Pittman of Australia, in 2000.
Ethiopian long-distance runner Kenenisa Bekele was the first to receive Rising Star award followed by Athlete of the Year trophy in 2003 and 2004 respectively. The other athletes to achieve the feat were Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, American sprinter Allyson Felix, Belgian heptathlete Nafissatou Thiam, Venezuelan triple jumper Yulimar Rojas, American hurdler and sprinter Sydney McLaughlin-Levron, Swedish pole vaulter Armand Duplantis, and Norwegian hurdler Karsten Warholm. Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt and American sprinter Erriyon Knighton are the only two athletes to be crowned Rising Star twice.
In 2003, the International Fair Play Committee (CIFP) first collaborated with World Athletics to look for moments that epitomise fair play during biennial World Athletics Championships with a view to recognising one athlete or moment with the CIFP Fair Play award. [2] In earlier years of the award, the nomination pool included track & filed athletes who had then retired but had made a lasting name for themselves both as competitors as well as in their daily lives. [3] In 2023, the partnership expanded the nomination period for award consideration beyond just the World Athletics Championships to include all World Athletics Series events and Continental Tour series events throughout the course of the year to enrich the pool of eligible athletes and potential nominations. [4]
In 2009, on the recommendation of IAAF Press Commission, the IAAF World Journalist Award was created to mark outstanding lifetime contributions in the field of athletics journalism. Germany’s Gustav Schwenk was the first recipient of this award. [5] The award was last given out in 2015. [6]
In 2015, World Athletics (then IAAF) together with their sponsor Adidas launched the Golden Shoe award to recognise the Best Performer of the IAAF World Championships, Beijing 2015. [7] The award went to Almaz Ayana (ETH). [8] 2015 was the singular year the Golden Shoe Award was presented by Adidas. [6] Following the doping crisis sweeping the sport and implicating World Athletics directly, Adidas decided to terminate their sponsorship deal with World Athletics three years earlier ending in 2016 instead of 2019. [9]
In 2020, three new awards were created amongst the eight given out at the annual World Athletics Awards ceremony to commemorate the challenges faced by athletes, event organisers and their support groups in the wake of the Covid-19 pandamic. The new honours were namely Covid inspiration award, athletes community award and member federations award. [10]
In 2023, the World Athlete of the Year awards for men and women were expanded into three event categories: track, field, and out of stadium. [1] [11]
In 2024, World Athletics further revamped the World Athletics Awards system. Besides the three separate World Athlete of the Year awards for each gender, there will also be men’s and women’s awards for an "overall World Athlete of the Year". Two finalists in each of the three category will progress to be considered for the overall World Athlete of the Year awards.
The system for selecting the winner for 2024 had also changed. As before, a three-way voting process with votes from the World Athletics Council (50%), World Athletics Family (25%) and the public via social media (25%) determined the finalists. However, a final round of voting cast by fans of the sport decided the overall World Athlete of the Year once the finalists had been established.
Letsile Tebogo and Sifan Hassan were the first men's and women's recipients of this overall winner awards in 2024. Each of them won two awards. Besides the overall award, they won the Athlete of the Year award for their event category too: Tebego was voted the Men's Track Athlete of the Year and Hassan was the winner of the Women's Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year award. [12]
As of 2024, the World Athletics Awards included the World Athlete of the Year awards, Rising Star awards, Coaching Achievement Award, Woman of the Year, Photograph of the Year, Member Federation Award, President’s Award [13] and CIFP Fair Play award. [6] The CIFP Fair Play award, previously a biennial award given out after each World Athletics Championships, became an annual award after the expansion of nomination period in 2023.
Awards that were given out on occasion when there are deserving nominees included the Lifetime Achievement awards (various types including those for athletes & coaches), Inspiration awards, World Athletics City award, Distinguished Career awards and Master Athlete of the Year awards. [6]
Past awards that had been discontinued included Performance of the Year awards, World Journalist awards and Journalist Lifetime Achievement award. [6]
Special awards were given out in the past to honor the outstanding achievements of an athlete and/or to commemorate a special milestone in the history of the sport. These included the historic Athlete of the 20th Century awards (1999), [14] an award to mark 80 Years of Women Athletes at the Olympics Games (2008) [15] and the Special Olympic awards given out after the Beijing Games (2008). [6]
Won per country
Country | Won |
---|---|
United States | 20 |
Jamaica | 10 |
Ethiopia | 7 |
Kenya | 5 |
United Kingdom | 5 |
Russia | 4 |
Morocco | 3 |
Sweden | 3 |
Germany | 2 |
Venezuela | 2 |
Algeria | 1 |
Australia | 1 |
Belgium | 1 |
Botswana | 1 |
Colombia | 1 |
Croatia | 1 |
Cuba | 1 |
Czech Republic | 1 |
Denmark | 1 |
France | 1 |
Netherlands | 1 |
New Zealand | 1 |
Norway | 1 |
Qatar | 1 |
Romania | 1 |
South Africa | 1 |
Year | Men's Track | Men's Field | Men's Out of stadium | Women's Track | Women's Field | Women's Out of stadium | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | Letsile Tebogo | Armand Duplantis | Tamirat Tola | Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone | Yaroslava Mahuchikh | Sifan Hassan | [12] |
The Rising Star of the Year award for the best under-20 athlete was introduced by World Athletics in 1998. [53] In 2008, the award was presented as "Revelation of the Year Award". [15]
Won per country
Country | Won |
---|---|
United States | 7 |
Kenya | 5 |
Ethiopia | 4 |
United Kingdom | 3 |
Sweden | 3 |
Germany | 2 |
Jamaica | 2 |
Australia | 1 |
Bahamas | 1 |
Belgium | 1 |
Canada | 1 |
Estonia | 1 |
France | 1 |
Grenada | 1 |
Italy | 1 |
Japan | 1 |
Norway | 1 |
Saudi Arabia | 1 |
Serbia | 1 |
Trinidad and Tobago | 1 |
Ukraine | 1 |
Venezuela | 1 |
The Fair Play award was introduced in 2003 by World Athletics in partnership with CIFP. Initially, the award was presented near the end of a World Championships edition but since 2019, it was part of the World Athletics Awards.
Beitia was recognised for her efforts to console Alessia Trost of Italy after she failed to qualify for the final in the women's high jump at the IAAF World Championships London 2017. It was an emotional moment for the 24-year-old Trost, whose mother and former coach passed away in the last year.
Dabo, a distance runner from Guinea-Bissau, made headlines around the world after he helped fellow runner, Jonathan Busby of Aruba, to the finish line during their opening round heat of the 5000m at the 2019 World Championships in Doha. Busby was near collapse with about 200 metres left in the race, when Dabo stopped to help his distressed fellow competitor.
In Oregon, at 2022 World Athletics Championships, Bradshaw injured herself after her pole snapped during the pole vault warm-up session. Her fellow competitor Nageotte immediately went over to support her. Bradshaw received a lot of abuse on social media for withdrawing from the competition, but Nageotte again offered support by taking to Twitter in defence of her competitor.
Gidey’s fair play moment occurred at the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23. After securing silver in the women’s 10,000m, Gidey went back to comfort Netherlands’ Sifan Hassan after Hassan’s dramatic fall on the home straight.
At Paris 2024, despite the disappointment of no-heighting in the pole vault and losing contention for a decathlon medal, Skotheim's continued to compete and unselfishly supported his compatriot Markus Rooth in the final discipline – the 1500m. Rooth eventually clinched the Olympic gold for Norway by 48 points. [70]
The award was first presented in 2006 and had several variation before its current name:
Year | Winner | Ref. |
---|---|---|
2006 | Woldemeskel Kostre | [6] |
2007 | Vitaly Petrov | [71] |
2008 | Not awarded | [15] |
2009 | Clyde Hart | [72] |
2010 | Santiago Antúnez | [60] |
2011 | John Velzian | [61] |
2012 | Glen Mills | [6] |
2013 | Alberto Salazar | [6] |
2014 | Tom Tellez | [6] |
2015 | Bart Bennema | [6] |
2016 | Harry Marra | [6] |
2017 | Anna Botha | [6] |
2018 | Joe Vigil | [6] |
2019 | Colm O'Connell | [73] |
2020 | Helena and Greg Duplantis | [74] |
2021 | Bobby Kersee | [49] |
2022 | Gennadii Zuiev | [75] |
2023 | Laurent Meuwly | [76] |
2024 | Trevor Painter | [77] |
The Inspiration award was first given out in 2000. It recognises an individual or group of individuals whose efforts have resulted in a particularly inspiring athletics event or experience.
The award started out in 2014 as "Women in Athletics Award" before it was changed by World Athletics in 2019 to "Women of the Year Award". [86]
Year | Women | Ref. |
---|---|---|
2014 | Evie Garrett Dennis | [6] |
2015 | Not awarded | |
2016 | Polyxeni Argeitak | [6] |
2017 | Cherry Alexander | [6] |
2018 | Evelyn Claudio Lopez | [84] |
2019 | Derartu Tulu | [85] |
2020 | Not awarded | |
2021 | Anju Bobby George | [87] |
2022 | Donna Fraser | [88] |
2023 | Falilatou Tchanile-Salifou | [89] |
2024 | Renee Washington | [90] |
The President's award was inaugurated in 2016 during the tenure of Sebastian Coe, President of World Athletics (2015 - present) to recognise and honour exceptional service to athletics.
The World Athletics Photograph of the Year was first awarded in 2017. [93]
Year | Winner (Organisation) | Ref. |
---|---|---|
2017 | Paul Sanwell (Freelance) | [6] |
2018 | Felix Sanchez Arrazola (Freelance) | [84] |
2019 | Felix Sanchez Arrazola (Freelance) | [85] |
2020 | Michael Steele (Getty Images) | [74] |
2021 | Ryan Pierse (Getty Images) | [91] |
2022 | Martin Rickett (PA Media) | [94] |
2023 | Mattia Ozbot (Freelance) | [95] |
2024 | Michael Steele (Getty Images) | [96] |
The Member Federation award was inaugurated in 2020. [10]
Year | Winner | Ref. |
---|---|---|
2020 | Polish Athletics Association | [74] |
2021 | Costa Rican Athletics Federation | [91] |
2022 | Brazilian Athletics Confederation | [97] |
2023 | Athletics Australia | [98] |
2024 | USA Track & Field | [99] |
Hicham El Guerrouj is a retired Moroccan middle-distance runner. El Guerrouj is the current world record holder for the 1500 metres and mile, and the former world record holder in the 2000 metres. He is the only man since Paavo Nurmi to win a gold medal in both the 1500 m and 5000 metres at the same Olympic Games.
The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is one lap around the track. Runners start in staggered positions and race in separate lanes for the entire course. In many countries, athletes previously competed in the 440-yard dash (402.336 m)—which is a quarter of a mile and was referred to as the "quarter-mile"—instead of the 400 m (437.445 yards), though this distance is now obsolete.
Yelena Gadzhievna Isinbayeva is a Russian former pole vaulter. She is twice an Olympic gold medalist, three-times a World Champion, the current world record holder in the event, and is widely considered the greatest female pole-vaulter of all time. Isinbayeva was banned from the 2016 Rio Olympics after revelations of an extensive state-sponsored doping programme in Russia, thus dashing her hopes of a grand retirement winning the Olympic gold medal. She retired from athletics in August 2016 after being elected to serve an 8-year term on the IOC's Athletes' Commission.
The men's 5,000 metres at the 2004 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics program were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium on August 25 and 28. The winning margin was 0.20 seconds.
Golden Gala is an annual track and field event normally held at the Olympic Stadium in Rome, Italy. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamond League. Following the 2013 death of Italian sprinting legend Pietro Mennea, the organizers added his name to the title of the meet.
The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the 100-meter (109.36 yd) dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1928 for women. The inaugural World Championships were in 1983.
The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightly shorter race, called the stadion and run on a straight track, was the first recorded event at the ancient Olympic Games. The 200 m places more emphasis on speed endurance than shorter sprint distances as athletes predominantly rely on anaerobic energy system during the 200 m sprint. Similarly to other sprint distances, the 200 m begins from the starting blocks. When the sprinters adopt the 'set' position in the blocks they are able to adopt a more efficient starting posture and isometrically preload their muscles. This enables them to stride forwards more powerfully when the race begins and start faster.
60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At indoor events, the 60 metres is run on lanes set out in the middle of the 'field', as is the hurdles event over the same distance, thus avoiding some of the effects of the banked track encircling the venue, upon which other track events in indoor events are run. At outdoor venues it is a rare distance, at least for senior athletes. The format of the event is similar to other sprint distances. The sprinters follow three initial instructions: 'on your marks', instructing them to take up position in the starting blocks; 'set', instructing them to adopt a more efficient starting posture, which also isometrically preloads their muscles. This will enable them to start faster. The final instruction is the firing of the starter's pistol. Upon hearing this the sprinters stride forwards from the blocks.
The 1500 metres or 1,500-metre run is the foremost middle distance track event in athletics. The distance has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 and the World Championships in Athletics since 1983. It is equivalent to 1.5 kilometers or approximately 15⁄16 miles. The event is closely associated with its slightly longer cousin, the mile run, from which it derives its nickname "the metric mile".
Usain St. Leo Bolt is a Jamaican retired sprinter who is widely considered to be the greatest sprinter of all time. He is an eight-time Olympic gold medalist and the world record holder in the 100 metres, 200 metres, and 4 × 100 metres relay.
Eliud Kipchoge is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in the marathon and formerly specialized in the 5000 metres. Kipchoge is the 2016 and 2020 Olympic marathon champion, and was the world record holder in the marathon from 2018 to 2023, until that record was broken by Kelvin Kiptum at the 2023 Chicago Marathon. Kipchoge has run 3 of the 10 fastest marathons in history.
The European Athlete of the Year award is an annual prize for sportspeople from Europe participating in athletics, including track and field, road running, and cross country running competitions. The election has been organised by the European Athletic Association (EAA), the European governing body for the sport of athletics, since 1993.
The Men's 5000 metres event at the 2003 IAAF World Championships in Paris, France on Sunday 31 August 2003 at 18:40h. There were a total number of 29 participating athletes, with two qualifying heats held prior to the final. Eliud Kipchoge won the race, followed by the Hicham El Guerrouj and Kenenisa Bekele. The race has received enduring attention because the three medalists–– Kipchoge, El Guerrouj, and Bekele–– are often considered among the greatest runners in history.
The 10-second barrier is the physical and psychological barrier of completing the 100 metres sprint in under ten seconds. The achievement is traditionally regarded as the hallmark of a world-class male sprinter. Its significance has become less important since the late 1990s, as an increasing number of runners have surpassed the ten seconds mark. The current men's world record holder is Usain Bolt, who ran a 9.58 at the 2009 IAAF World Championship competition.
This article contains an overview of the year 2009 in athletics.
Yomif Kejelcha Atomsa is an Ethiopian distance runner. He holds the current world record in the short track mile, and the half marathon.
Armand Gustav Duplantis, known mononymously as Mondo and also as Mondo Duplantis, is a Swedish-American pole vaulter. Regarded as the greatest pole vaulter of all time, Duplantis is the current world outdoor and indoor record holder [6.26 m and 6.22 m respectively]. He is a two-time Olympic champion, two-time World outdoor and indoor champion, and the current European champion.
Noah Lyles is an American track and field sprinter who competes in the 60 meters, 100 meters and 200 meters events. His personal best of 19.31 seconds in the 200m is the American record, and makes him the third fastest of all-time. He is an Olympic champion and six-time World champion.
Erriyon Knighton is an American sprinter specializing in the 100 meters and 200 meters. At the age of 18, he won the bronze medal in the 200 m at the 2022 World Athletics Championships, becoming the youngest ever individual sprint medalist in Championships history. He is the 2023 U.S. Champion in the 200 meters and the 2023 World Championships silver medalist.