IAAF best to be unveiled on Tuesday

IN MONTE CARLO, MONACO

World athletics governing body, IAAF, launches a busy week today which will be highlighted by the announcement of the year’s top performers.

The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) end-of-year gala will be held tomorrow night with Kenya’s record holders Eliud Kipchoge (marathon) and Beatrice Chepkoech (steeplechase) in the running for the top men’s and women’s awards.

The ceremony will be held at the iconic Grimaldi Forum that traditionally hosts top global galas. IAAF will also announce hosts for the 2021 World Cross Country Championships and 2023 World Championships.

Doha (Qatar) and Eugene (USA) will host the World Championships next year and in 2021 while Aarhus (Denmark) are the hosts of next year’s World Cross Country Championships.

The decisions will be reached at the 215th IAAF Council meeting to be held here from today and which will also make various other decisions.The IAAF’s executive board held its meeting yesterday before unveiling the IAAF Heritage Legends programme at Monaco’s Le Meridien Beach Plaza.

Various IAAF commissions and advisory groups will also hold their annual meetings here on the sidelines of the annual awards ceremony.
Kipchoge is the frontrunner for the overall 2018 men’s award after his brilliant run at the Berlin Marathon where he lowered the world marathon record with the biggest improvement in time since 1967. His new mark of two hours, one minute and 39 seconds was more than a minute faster than the previous record held by compatriot Dennis Kimetto.

Kipchoge, who is also the Olympic marathon champion, also won the London Marathon this year. He will be up against US world indoor 60 metres record holder Christian Coleman, Sweden’s pole vault European champion Armand Duplantis, France’s decathlon world record holder Kevin Mayer and Qatari hurdler Abderrahman Samba.

Chepkoech, who improved the world steeplechase record by eight seconds, running 8:44:32 at the Monaco Diamond League meeting in July, comes up against British sprinter Dina Asher-Smith, Colombian jumper Caterine Ibarguen, sprinter Shauane Miller-Uibo of The Bahamas and Belgian heptathlete Nafissatou Thiam.

Ahead of the week’s activities, the IAAF has also paid tribute to athletes, journalists and officials who died this year including two Kenyans - former world hurdles champion Nicholas Bett and cross country legend Paul Koech.

Also passing on this year was Briton Roger Bannister, the first man to break the four-minute mile, American Olympic champions Horace Ashenfelter (steeplechase gold medal at the 1952 Olympics) and Lindy Remigino (100 metres champion at the 1952 Olympics).

Sudan’s Hassan Agabani, an IAAF honorary life member and former IAAF Council member is among officials who passed on in 2018.
Besides the men’s and women’s awards, the IAAF will also celebrate the year’s top coach and top woman official alongside the “President’s Award” which will be handed for distinguished service to the sport.

Also lined up is the IAAF Rising Star award for top juniors with Kenya’s World Under-20 Championships steeplechase gold medallist Celliphine Chespol and 10,000m world under-20 champion Rhonex Kipruto among the nominees in the girls’ and boys’ categories, respectively.

The “Photo of the Year” award will also be dished out with European photographers Felix Sanchez Arrazola, John Sibley, Morgan Treacy and Micheal Steele making the shortlist.