World Athletics on Wednesday confirmed a list of 10 nominees for the Women’s World Athlete of the Year award, with Nigeria’s golden girl, Tobi Amusan, one of the nominees.
The confirmation signalled the beginning of the voting process for the 2022 World Athletes of the Year ahead of the World Athletics Awards 2022.
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The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 10 athletes were selected by an international panel of athletics experts, comprising representatives from all six continental areas of World Athletics.
World 100 metres hurdles champion, Amusan, set a world record of 12.12 seconds earlier this year and won the Diamond League, Commonwealth and African titles.
She has been picked alongside Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica, who is the world 100m champion after claiming a fifth gold medal in the event.
Fraser-Pryce is also the Diamond League 100m champion and has a world-leading 10.62 among her record seven sub-10.70 100m races of the season.
Others on the nominees’ list include Chase Ealey of the U.S., the world shot put champion and a world indoor shot put silver medallist.
She is the Diamond League shot put champion, with a world-leading 20.51m.
Peru’s Kimberly Garcia, the world 20km race walk champion who won Peru’s first-ever World Athletics Championships medal, is also on the list.
There is also Jamaica’s Shericka Jackson, the world 200m champion and Diamond League 200m champion, and ran a world-leading 21.45 to move to second on the world all-time list.
Faith Kipyegon of Kenya is also one of the nominees, being a world 1500m champion and Diamond League 1500m champion.
She ran a world-leading Kenyan record of 3:50.37, just three-tenths of a second off the world record
Ukraine’s Yaroslava Mahuchikh, who is the world indoor high jump champion and world high jump silver medallist, as well as a European high jump champion, is equally on the list.
She jumped a world-leading 2.05m, equalling the outdoor national best.
Sydney McLaughlin of the U.S. also made the list, with her profile as world 400m hurdles and 4x400m champion.
She broke the world 400m hurdles record with 51.41 at the US Championships, and further improved the world record to 50.68 to win the world title.
World 400m champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo of Bahamas is equally in contention, brandishing the profile of being the world indoor 400m champion and NACAC 400m champion.
Venezuela’s Yulimar Rojas, the world indoor and outdoor triple jump champion and Diamond League triple jump champion, completes the list, after improving her world record to 15.74m in Belgrade.
In what is another memorable year for the sport, the nominations reflect some of the standout performances achieved at the World Athletics Championships held in Oregon in July.
The World Athletics Indoor Championships held earlier in Belgrade was another standout event, alongside several one-day meeting circuits and other events around the world.
Voting process
A three-way voting process will determine the finalists, with the World Athletics Council and the World Athletics Family casting their votes by email.
Fans can vote online via the World Athletics social media platforms.
Individual graphics for each nominee will be posted on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube this week, with a “like” on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube or a retweet on Twitter counting as one vote.
The World Athletics Council’s vote will count for 50 per cent of the result, while the World Athletics Family’s votes and the public votes will each count for 25 per cent of the final result.
Voting for the World Athletes of the Year closes at midnight on October 31.
At the conclusion of the voting process, five women and five men finalists will be announced by World Athletics.
The winners will be revealed on World Athletics’ social media platforms in early December, while further information about the World Athletics Awards 2022 will be announced in the coming weeks. (NAN)
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