Kenyan marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge and American track and field sensation Dalilah Muhammad have been named World Athletics’ male and female athletes of the year.
The pair clinched the coveted titles at the World Athletics Awards 2019, which were held at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco on Saturday (23 Nov).
Kipchoge won the award last year, and his marathon CV keeps growing. In April the Kenyan marathon maestro clinched his fourth victory at the London Marathon with a 2:02:37 course record, the third fastest performance of all time.
In October the 35-year-old Kenyan runner did the seemingly unthinkable and what most people around the world thought as impossible running the Ineos159 Challenge in Vienna under two-hours, breaching the barrier with a 1:59:40.2 time.
Commenting on the award, Kipchoge said on Facebook: “Proud to be named #WorldAthletics Male Athlete of the Year again. It was a truly historic year. #NoHumanIsLimited”.
Kipchoge is undoubtedly the greatest marathoner of the modern age and receiving the World Athlete of the Year award is testament of his sheer brilliance.
Muhammad, 29, broke the world record in the 400m hurdles twice this year, first with a 52.20 performance at the US Championships in July to eclipse a mark which had stood since 2003.
The American star broke it again at the World Athletics Championships Doha 2019, clocking 52.16 to claim the world title for the first time. Muhammad also won world gold in the 4x400m relay and won five of her seven races.
