It is the Athletics award season again and four African star athletes have been nominated for the World Athletics Track Athlete of the Year category of the World Athletics Awards 2024.
Africa led with two nominees each in the Women’s Track Athlete of the Year and Men’s Track Athlete of the Year categories. Kenya, as expected dominated the nominations with three athletes.
The only non-Kenyan nominee is history maker Letsile Tebogo of Botswana – who in August won his nation’s first Olympic gold medal in any sport and also became the first African man to win the 200m gold at the Olympics and first Olympic gold medal for his nation in any sport.
Tebogo went on to help his team win to win the 4x400m silver medal. And also sits on the summit of the men’s 200m. The Motswana is nominated alongside Olympic 800m Champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi from Kenya in the men’s category.
At 20, Wanyonyi was the youngest ever 800m winner in the history of the Olympic games. He beat a tough field by narrowly clocking 1:41.19 for the gold medal in Paris.
By so doing, he won Kenya’s fifth consecutive 800m gold medal at the Olympic Games. That is pure dominance! He is also the Diamond League 800m champion.
Tebogo and Wanyonyi will face off against Olympic 100m champion and 200m bronze medalist Noah Lyles (USA); Olympic 110m hurdles champion, World indoor 60m hurdles champion and world record holder Grant Holloway (USA); Olympic 5000m champion and World 3000m record holder Jakob Ingebrigtsen (Norway); and Olympic 400m hurdles and 4x400m champion, Rai Benjamin (USA).
Vote for your Male Track Athlete of the Year
The Olympic 5000m and 10,000m Champion Beatrice Chebet headlines the female track athlete category.
Chebet, 26 became the first Kenyan female to win the 10,000m Olympics title. She is also the 10,000m World record holder – a feat she attained in May at the Prefontaine Classic, when she clocked 28:54.14 to become the first woman to run the 10,000m under 29 minutes.
The greatest 1500m runner of all time, Faith Kipyegon, the 2023 World Track Athlete of the Year is also nominated.
Kipyegon defended her Olympic 1500m title in Paris, making her the first female track athlete to win three back-to-back Olympic titles in any distance. This year, she also lowered her 1500m during the Paris Diamond League, just a month before the Olympics in Paris.
Joining Chebet and Kipyegon in contesting for the female track athlete crown is the history maker from Saint Lucia Julien Alfred, the Olympic 100m champion and World indoor 60m champion.
Other nominees includes: Olympic 400m hurdles and 4x400m champion Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (USA), who is also World 400m hurdles record holder; Marileidy Paulino (Dominican Republic), the Olympic 400m champion and Diamond League 400m champion as well as the Olympic 200m champion, Olympic 4x100m and 4x400m champion Gabby Thomas (USA).
Vote for your Female Track Athlete of the Year
The vote to determine the Track Athlete of the Year finalists is now open on World Athletics social media platforms. Get voting now for your favourite African track athletes. Voting closes 27 October, 2024.
Meet The Authors
Michelle is a qualified all rounder journalist from the Kenya Institute of Mass Communication, Radio and online with BBC College of Journalism and BBC World Service and Radio, Online and TV training with Radio Netherlands Training Centre in Holland. Currently working as a sports producer with a focus on Athletics.
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