As part of the World Athletics Awards 2025, World Athletics is pleased to confirm the nominees for Women&rsquo;s Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year and Men&rsquo;s Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year.
There are five nominees for these two categories, and a vote will take place to identify the two finalists for each.
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/awards/news/world-athlete-of-the-year-how-it-works" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Athlete of the Year &ndash; how it works</a>
The nominations reflect some of the standout performances achieved during another memorable year for the sport, which peaked with the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25.
<h3> Nominees for 2025 Women&rsquo;s Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year (in alphabetical order):</h3>
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/ethiopia/tigst-assefa-14388506" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tigst Assefa, Ethiopia</a> &bull; World marathon silver medallist and London Marathon winner &bull; World leader with a women-only world record
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/netherlands/sifan-hassan-14489606" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sifan Hassan, Netherlands</a> &bull;&nbsp;Sydney Marathon winner &bull; London Marathon third place
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/kenya/peres-jepchirchir-14593938" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Peres Jepchirchir, Kenya</a> &bull; World marathon champion &bull; Won her fifth global title
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/kenya/agnes-jebet-ngetich-14758189" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Agnes Ngetich, Kenya</a> &bull; World 10km record (women-only) &bull; Half marathon world lead with third-fastest performance of all time
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/spain/maria-perez-14470735" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Maria Perez, Spain</a> &bull; Double world champion in 20km and 35km race walk &bull; Unbeaten in 2025
<h3> Nominees for 2025 Men&rsquo;s Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year (in alphabetical order):</h3>
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/brazil/caio-bonfim-14175843" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Caio Bonfim, Brazil</a> &bull; World 20km race walk champion &bull; World 35km race walk silver medallist
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/canada/evan-dunfee-14174336" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Evan Dunfee, Canada</a> &bull; World 35km race walk champion &bull; World 35km race walk record and area 20km race walk record
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/ethiopia/yomif-kejelcha-14594967" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Yomif Kejelcha, Ethiopia</a> &bull; World 5km leader with sixth-fastest performance in history &bull; World 10km leader with second-fastest performance in history
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/kenya/sabastian-kimaru-sawe-14833335" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sabastian Sawe, Kenya</a> &bull; London Marathon and Berlin Marathon winner &bull; Top two marathon performances of 2025
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/tanzania/alphonce-felix-simbu-14487535" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alphonce Simbu, Tanzania</a> &bull; World marathon champion &bull;&nbsp;Boston Marathon runner-up 
The vote to determine the Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year finalists is now open on World Athletics social media platforms &ndash;&nbsp;on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthletics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/worldathletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">X</a>. Voting closes on 2 November and the winners will be announced at the World Athletics Awards on 30 November.
The <a href="https://worldathletics.org/awards/news/nominees-announced-track-athlete-year-2025" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nominees for the Track Athlete of the Year awards</a> were announced on 13 October and the <a href="https://worldathletics.org/awards/news/nominees-announced-field-athlete-year-2025" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nominees for the Field Athlete of the Year awards</a> were announced on 20 October.
The overall women's and men's World Athlete of the Year award winners will be selected from among the track, field and out of stadium category winners.
World Athletics
&nbsp;

World Athletics is pleased to confirm the nominees for Women’s Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year and Men’s Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year

Nominees announced for Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year 2025

The voting process for the World Athletes of the Year continues this week and World Athletics is pleased to confirm the nominees for Women&rsquo;s Field Athlete of the Year and Men&rsquo;s Field Athlete of the Year, as part of the World Athletics Awards 2025.
There are five nominees for these two categories, and a vote will take place to identify the two finalists for each.
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/awards/news/world-athlete-of-the-year-how-it-works" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Athlete of the Year &ndash; how it works</a>
The nominations reflect some of the standout performances achieved during another memorable year for the sport, which peaked with the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25. 
<h3>Nominees for 2025 Women&rsquo;s Field Athlete of the Year (in alphabetical order):</h3>
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/valarie-allman-14479216" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Valarie Allman, USA</a> &bull; World and Diamond League discus champion &bull; Undefeated, with nine of the top 11 performances of the year
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/tara-davis-woodhall-14596561" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tara Davis-Woodhall, USA</a> &bull; World long jump champion &bull; Undefeated, with the top three performances of the year
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/anna-hall-14713272" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Anna Hall, USA</a> &bull; World heptathlon champion &bull; Moved to joint second on world all-time list and set the top three performances of 2025
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/australia/nicola-olyslagers-14455361" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nicola Olyslagers, Australia</a> &bull; World high jump champion indoors and outdoors &bull; Diamond League champion and world leader with area record
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/canada/camryn-rogers-14607142" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Camryn Rogers, Canada</a> &bull; World hammer champion &bull; World leader, moved to second on world all-time list with area record
<h3> Nominees for 2025 Men&rsquo;s Field Athlete of the Year (in alphabetical order):</h3>
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/sweden/armand-duplantis-14679502" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mondo Duplantis, Sweden</a> &bull; World pole vault champion indoors and outdoors &bull; Set four world records and was undefeated, including the Diamond League title
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/italy/mattia-furlani-14905216" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mattia Furlani, Italy</a> &bull; World long jump champion indoors and outdoors &bull; Two of the top three performances of the year
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/canada/ethan-katzberg-14809348" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ethan Katzberg, Canada</a> &bull; World hammer champion &bull; World leader, moved to fifth on world all-time list with area record
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/new-zealand/hamish-kerr-14633982" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hamish Kerr, New Zealand</a> &bull; World high jump champion and world indoor silver medallist &bull; World leader with area record
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/portugal/pedro-pichardo-14412588" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pedro Pichardo, Portugal</a> &bull; World triple jump champion &bull; World leader
 The vote to determine the Field Athlete of the Year finalists is now open on World Athletics social media platforms &ndash; on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthletics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/worldathletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">X</a>. Voting closes on 26 October and the winners will be announced at the World Athletics Awards on 30 November.
The <a href="https://worldathletics.org/awards/news/nominees-announced-track-athlete-year-2025" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nominees for the Track Athlete of the Year awards</a> were announced on 13 October and the nominees for the Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year awards will be announced on 27 October.
The overall women's and men's World Athlete of the Year award winners will be selected from among the track, field and out of stadium category winners.
World Athletics

World Athletics is pleased to confirm the nominees for Women’s Field Athlete of the Year and Men’s Field Athlete of the Year

Nominees announced for Field Athlete of the Year 2025

An award for the best athletics photograph of the year will once again be presented as part of the World Athletics Awards 2025.
Any professional photographer who has attended an athletics event in 2025 can take part in the World Athletics Photograph of the Year.
Photographers are requested to <a href="https://eu.research.net/r/waphotoawards2025" target="_blank" rel="noopener">submit one photograph via the online form</a> and include a caption, the date the photograph was taken, the image's technical information and a short photographer bio (no more than 50 words). Entries should be no larger than 5MB and must be received by 11:59pm Monaco time on 31 October.
A panel will judge the photos and will select the top 10 entries. From that shortlist, the panel will then select the top three images. The finalists will be revealed on 13 November and the winner will be announced via World Athletics social media platforms at the end of November.
&bull; <a href="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/document/68ed2973542847e09f6dc1e5.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full contest rules</a>
<h3>The panellists are:</h3>
Christel El Saneh El Saneh is the digital creative manager at World Athletics, managing photography and visual content across digital platforms. She joined World Athletics in 2021 and covered the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympic Games as a photographer. The long jumper has spent most of her life in athletics and her journey has included forming part of the IOC Young Leader&nbsp;and Young Reporters programmes.
Pascal Rondeau Rondeau started his sports photography career in London for the prestigious Allsport photography agency. He then led the photo department of L&rsquo;Equipe newspaper in Paris. Over the past 30 years, he has covered eight Summer Olympic Games and a range of other major sports events. He was appointed Venue Photo Manager at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games and Photo Chief at Paris 2024.&nbsp;
Sally Pearson During her highly successful career, Pearson won two world 100m hurdles titles, in Daegu in 2011 and in London in 2017, as well as Olympic gold in 2012, Olympic silver in 2008 and world silver in 2013. At the time, her 12.28 in Daegu placed her fourth on the world all-time list. Indoors, she secured the world 60m hurdles title in 2012 and silver in 2014. She more recently attended the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25 as a World Athletics ambassador.
Christian Taylor The recently retired US athlete was the most consistent triple jumper of his generation. He won his first world title at the age of 21, then went on to win three more. He earned Olympic gold medals in 2012 and 2016, while his triple jump PB of 18.21m ranks him second on the world all-time list. A multi-talented athlete, Taylor also excelled at the long jump and 400m. Like Pearson, he was a World Athletics ambassador for the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25.
World Athletics
&nbsp;

An award for the best athletics photograph of the year will once again be presented as part of the World Athletics Awards 2025

Best photographs of 2025 to be recognised as part of World Athletics Awards

As part of the World Athletics Awards 2025, World Athletics is pleased to confirm the nominees for Women&rsquo;s Track Athlete of the Year and Men&rsquo;s Track Athlete of the Year.
There are five nominees for these two categories, and a vote will take place to identify the two finalists for each.
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/awards/news/world-athlete-of-the-year-how-it-works" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Athlete of the Year &ndash; how it works</a>
The nominations reflect some of the standout performances achieved during another memorable year for the sport, which peaked with the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25. 
<h3>Nominees for 2025 Women&rsquo;s Track Athlete of the Year (in alphabetical order):</h3>
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/netherlands/femke-bol-14707010" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Femke Bol, Netherlands</a> &bull; World and Diamond League 400m hurdles champion &bull; Undefeated in the 400m hurdles, with the top three performances of the year
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/kenya/beatrice-chebet-14749924" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Beatrice Chebet, Kenya</a> &bull;&nbsp;World 5000m and 10,000m champion &bull; World 5000m record
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/melissa-jefferson-wooden-14756997" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, USA</a> &bull; World 100m, 200m and 4x100m champion &bull; Undefeated in the 100m, with the top five performances of the year
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/kenya/faith-kipyegon-14413305" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Faith Kipyegon, Kenya</a> &bull; World 1500m champion and 5000m silver &bull; World 1500m record
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/sydney-mclaughlin-levrone-14624749" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, USA</a> &bull; World 400m and 4x400m champion&nbsp; &bull; Undefeated in 400m and 400m hurdles, with second-fastest 400m of all time 
<h3>Nominees for 2025 Men&rsquo;s Track Athlete of the Year (in alphabetical order):</h3>
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/rai-benjamin-14574865" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rai Benjamin, USA</a> &bull; World 400m hurdles champion &bull; Two of the top three 400m hurdles performances of the year
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/france/jimmy-gressier-14694062" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jimmy Gressier, France</a> &bull; World 10,000m champion and 5000m bronze medallist &bull; Diamond League 3000m champion
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/noah-lyles-14536762" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Noah Lyles, USA</a> &bull; World 200m and 4x100m champion and 100m bronze medallist &bull; Unbeaten in the 200m, including the Diamond League title
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/united-states/cordell-tinch-14719972" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cordell Tinch, USA</a> &bull; World and Diamond League 110m hurdles champion &bull; Four of the top six performances of the year
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/athletes/kenya/emmanuel-wanyonyi-14974928" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Emmanuel Wanyonyi, Kenya</a> &bull; World and Diamond League 800m champion &bull;&nbsp;Four of the top six performances of the year 
The vote to determine the Track Athlete of the Year finalists is now open on World Athletics social media platforms &ndash;&nbsp;on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthletics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/worldathletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">X</a>. Voting closes on 19 October and the winners will be announced at the World Athletics Awards on 30 November.
The nominees for the Field Athlete of the Year awards will be announced on 20 October and the nominees for the Out of Stadium Athlete of the Year awards will be announced on 27 October.
The overall women's and men's World Athlete of the Year award winners will be selected from among the track, field and out of stadium category winners.
World Athletics
&nbsp;

World Athletics is pleased to confirm the nominees for Women’s Track Athlete of the Year and Men’s Track Athlete of the Year

Nominees announced for Track Athlete of the Year 2025

1988 Carl Lewis (USA) &ndash; Florence Griffith-Joyner (USA)
1989 Roger Kingdom (USA) &ndash; Ana Fidelia Quirot (CUB)
1990 Steve Backley (GBR) &ndash; Merlene Ottey (JAM)
1991 Carl Lewis (USA) &ndash; Katrin Krabbe (GER)
1992 Kevin Young (USA) &ndash; Heike Henkel (GER)
1993 Colin Jackson (GBR) &ndash; Sally Gunnell (GBR)
1994 Noureddine Morceli (ALG) &ndash; Jackie Joyner-Kersee (USA)
1995 Jonathan Edwards (GBR) &ndash; Gwen Torrence (USA)
1996 Michael Johnson (USA) &ndash; Svetlana Masterkova (RUS)
1997 Wilson Kipketer (DEN) &ndash; Marion Jones (USA)
1998 Haile Gebrselassie (ETH) &ndash; Marion Jones (USA)
1999 Michael Johnson (USA) &ndash; Gabriela Szabo (ROM)
2000 Jan Zelezny (CZE)
2001 Hicham El Guerrouj (MAR) &ndash; Stacy Dragila (USA)
2002 Hicham El Guerrouj (MAR) &ndash; Paula Radcliffe (GBR)
2003 Hicham El Guerrouj (MAR) &ndash; Hestrie Cloete (RSA)
2004 Kenenisa Bekele (ETH) &ndash; Yelena Isinbayeva (RUS)
2005 Kenenisa Bekele (ETH) &ndash; Yelena Isinbayeva (RUS)
2006 Asafa Powell (JAM) &ndash; Sanya Richards (USA)
2007 Tyson Gay (USA) &ndash; Meseret Defar (ETH)
2008 Usain Bolt (JAM) &ndash; Yelena Isinbayeva (RUS)
2009 Usain Bolt (JAM) &ndash; Sanya Richards (USA)
2010 David Rudisha (KEN) &ndash; Blanka Vlasic (CRO)
2011 Usain Bolt (JAM) &ndash; Sally Pearson (AUS)
2012 Usain Bolt (JAM) &ndash; Allyson Felix (USA)
2013 Usain Bolt (JAM) &ndash; Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (JAM)
2014 Renaud Lavillenie (FRA) &ndash; Valerie Adams (NZL)
2015 Ashton Eaton (USA) &ndash; Genzebe Dibaba (ETH)
2016 Usain Bolt (JAM) &ndash; Almaz Ayana (ETH)
2017 Mutaz Essa Barshim (QAT) &ndash; Nafissatou Thiam (BEL)
2018 Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) &ndash; Caterine Ibarguen (COL)
2019 Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) &ndash; Dalilah Muhammad (USA)
2020 Mondo Duplantis (SWE) &ndash; Yulimar Rojas (VEN)
2021 Karsten Warholm (NOR) &ndash; Elaine Thompson-Herah (JAM)
2022 Mondo Duplantis (SWE) &ndash; Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (USA)
2023 track: Noah Lyles (USA) &ndash; Faith Kipyegon (KEN) field: Mondo Duplantis (SWE) &ndash; Yulimar Rojas (VEN) out of stadium: Kelvin Kiptum (KEN) &ndash; Tigist Assefa (ETH)
2024 Letsile Tebogo (BOT) &ndash; Sifan Hassan (NED) track: Letsile Tebogo (BOT) &ndash; Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (USA) field: Mondo Duplantis (SWE) &ndash; Yaroslava Mahuchikh (UKR) out of stadium: Tamirat Tola (ETH) &ndash; Sifan Hassan (NED)&nbsp;
&nbsp;

A list of the athletes to have claimed World Athlete of the Year honours since 1988

World Athletes of the Year 1988-2024

The standout athletes of the year will again be celebrated at the World Athletics Awards 2025 on 30 November. Like last year, there will be three separate awards for women and three for men, recognising the athletes of the year for track, field and out-of-stadium events. There will also be men&rsquo;s and women&rsquo;s awards for an overall World Athlete of the Year.
A panel of international experts has compiled a long list of nominees for each of the three main award categories. Voting will take place to determine the two finalists in each category.
The World Athletics Council&rsquo;s vote will count for 50% of the result, while the World Athletics Family&rsquo;s votes and social media votes will each count for 25% of the result.
The World Athletics Council and the World Athletics Family will cast their votes by email, while the social vote will be open on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthletics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/worldathletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">X</a>. Individual graphics for each nominee will be posted; a 'like' on Facebook and Instagram or a repost on X will count as one vote.
Once the finalists have been established, a fan vote will open &ndash; <a href="https://worldathletics.org/worldathletics-plus" target="_blank" rel="noopener">for all registered users of World Athletics+</a> &ndash; to help determine the overall World Athletes of the Year.
The 2025 World Athletics Awards also includes the Rising Star awards, Coaching Achievement Award, Woman of the Year, Photograph of the Year, Member Federation Award and President&rsquo;s Award.
<h2>Key dates</h2>
13-19 October &ndash; vote open for track athletes of the year 20-26 October &ndash; vote open for field athletes of the year 27 October-2 November &ndash; vote open for out-of-stadium athletes of the year 4 November &ndash; finalists announced for each category and fan vote opens 9 November &ndash; fan vote closes 30 November&nbsp;&ndash;&nbsp;World Athletics Awards 2025
Fans can <a href="https://worldathletics.org/worldathletics-plus" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sign up to World Athletics+</a> to pre-register for the fan vote.
World Athletics

The standout athletes of the year will again be celebrated at the World Athletics Awards 2025

World Athlete of the Year – how it works

On the eve of the World Athletics Indoor Championships Nanjing 25 &ndash; the first global championships of the year &ndash; the International Fair Play Committee (CIFP), in partnership with World Athletics, is inviting fans across the world to nominate moments that epitomise fair play with a view to recognising one standout athlete or moment at the World Athletics Awards later this year.
As was the case last year, the nominations period includes all World Athletics Series (WAS) events and Continental Tour events throughout the course of the year.
Following the final WAS event of the year, a jury will be empanelled to review the nominations and judge on a shortlist of five fair play moments in athletics from 2025.
Fans will then be asked to cast their votes through the World Athletics social media channels for the shortlisted moment that they feel best exemplifies fair play. These votes will be combined with the votes from the jury to determine three finalists for the Fair Play Award. The winner will be revealed at the World Athletics Awards later in the year.
To nominate an athlete or moment for the Fair Play Award, please email <a href="mailto:fairplayaward@worldathletics.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fairplayaward@worldathletics.org</a>.
Sander Skotheim was the recipient of last year&rsquo;s award. His fair play moment occurred at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where the Norwegian decathlete had been in contention for a medal. Despite the disappointment of no-heighting in the pole vault, meaning that he was no longer in contention for a medal, Skotheim decided to continue competing. In the process he supported his compatriot and the eventual winner Markus Rooth, helping his teammate in the final discipline &ndash; the 1500m.
The CIFP was established over 60 years ago to promote the principles of fair play in sport: fair competition, respect, friendship, team spirit, equality and sport without doping. It honours those who respect the written and unwritten rules of sport, which include integrity, solidarity, tolerance, care, excellence and joy, and who set an example for others, on and off the field. The CIFP&rsquo;s first collaboration with World Athletics dates back to the 2003 World Athletics Championships in Paris. Twelve awards have been handed out since then.
World Athletics

The nominations period includes all World Athletics Series events and Continental Tour events throughout the course of the year

World Athletics and CIFP invite fans to nominate fair play moments for 2025

Mattia Furlani made quite the leap in 2024. At the age of just 19, the Italian jumps talent became an Olympic medallist, a world indoor medallist, a European medallist and a world U20 record-holder.
All this in what was deemed a &ldquo;transition year&rdquo; as he made the move from the U20 to senior ranks. It led to him being named Men&rsquo;s Rising Star at the World Athletics Awards 2024 in Monaco.
&ldquo;I dreamed of this season. For me, it was a perfect year,&rdquo; he reflected. &ldquo;I am so happy with this season &ndash; from the indoors, to Rome, to the Olympic Games and the final in the Diamond League.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/67768bc8af3e5ee68047caf6.JPG" alt="Rising Stars Mattia Furlani and Sembo Almayew on stage at the World Athletics Awards 2024" />
Rising Stars Mattia Furlani and Sembo Almayew on stage at the World Athletics Awards 2024 (&copy; World Athletics)
</div>
As Furlani explained when receiving his Rising Star award on stage at the Theatre Princesse Grace in Monaco in December, it was the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow in March that kicked it all off.
&ldquo;Glasgow, it was my first senior medal on the global stage,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;There were amazing emotions.&rdquo;
At 19 years and 24 days, Furlani became the youngest athlete in history to win a world indoor medal in the horizontal jumps. His first-round leap of 8.22m matched the mark achieved by multiple global gold medallist Miltiadis Tentoglou of Greece, with Tentoglou only beating his teenage rival on countback courtesy of a superior second-best jump.
&ldquo;What a great day &ndash; I have been dreaming about this medal for weeks and I want to thank everybody who has worked with me," said Furlani. "This is the beginning of a long journey.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/678292add504dcd421d3f2f9.jpg" alt="Mattia Furlani at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow" />
Mattia Furlani at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow (&copy; Dan Vernon)
</div>
His journey continued the following month, when he opened his outdoor season at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Suzhou before heading back home to compete in Savona in May. Leaping 8.36m, Furlani added one centimetre to the world U20 record of 8.35m that had been set by Russia&rsquo;s Sergey Morgunov in 2012. In the lead up to the World Indoor Championships, Furlani had jumped 8.34m at the Italian Championships, missing that record by a single centimetre.
&ldquo;Finally! I have been looking for this result for a long time and it means a lot,&rdquo; Furlani told the Italian athletics federation at the time. &ldquo;It means that we are working well and on the right path, on the threshold of two very important events such as the European Championships in Rome and the Paris Olympics.&rdquo;
Furlani was to make the most of both of those opportunities, too. At the European Championships, competing in front of a home crowd once again, he improved the world U20 record to 8.38m to secure another silver medal behind Tentoglou.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6782949a161d001e356d529a.JPG" alt="Mattia Furlani at the World Athletics Awards" />
Mattia Furlani at the World Athletics Awards (&copy; World Athletics)
</div>
Furlani became an Olympic medallist two months later, leaping 8.34m to bag bronze behind Tentoglou and Jamaica&rsquo;s Wayne Pinnock in Paris.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a dream. I live the dream every day,&rdquo; said Furlani afterwards. &ldquo;With dedication, work and belief, I&rsquo;m here with this medal.&rdquo;
It earned him high praise from Tentoglou, too.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I tell him all the time that he is crazy. What he does is unreal,&rdquo; said the two-time Olympic champion. &ldquo;As a young talent, I was jumping eight metres when I was 18 and 19 years old, but I was never able to be so consistent at that young age. It took me a long time to get to that stage.&rdquo;
In total, Furlani surpassed eight metres in eight competitions in 2024. The double 2022 European U18 champion, who claimed gold in both the long jump and high jump in that competition in Jerusalem, has improved his long jump best from 8.04m in 2022 to 8.24m in 2023 and 8.38m in 2024.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/62c4c3dfc76235b90dc02f91.jpg" alt="Italian long jumper Mattia Furlani at the European U18 Championships in Jerusalem" />
Italian long jumper Mattia Furlani at the European U18 Championships in Jerusalem (&copy; Getty Images)
</div>
He intends to build on this in 2025, with the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing in March and the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo in September his big targets.
&ldquo;It was a transition year for him (in 2024), so I am really happy that he is getting to an elite level. We want to go further,&rdquo; explained his mother Khadidiatou Seck, a former sprinter who is now Furlani&rsquo;s main coach. She guides her son alongside his father Marcello, a 2.27m high jumper. &ldquo;I am really happy for him, with how things have gone this year. I am expecting more in the future.&rdquo;
Furlani agrees. &ldquo;We are very excited because we are working very well,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;The emotion and these vibes, I want to try to get the best out of myself.&rdquo;
Furlani has great memories of watching the Olympic Games in Tokyo and hopes to be part of another successful Italian team when global athletics action returns to Japan&rsquo;s capital in 2025.
&ldquo;For Italy, it was a special Olympic Games because we got five gold medals,&rdquo; Furlani reflected when asked about his memories of the Games. &ldquo;The gold medal by Gianmarco (Tamberi, in the high jump), because that was when I did high jump and I was not a long jumper.
&ldquo;I saw with my eyes, the emotion. He is one of my biggest inspirations. And the gold medal in the 100m from Marcell (Jacobs). That was a big inspiration, too, because before the 100m, Marcell was a long jumper.&rdquo;
Considering his own progression,&nbsp;Furlani&nbsp;added: &ldquo;Every year I beat my personal best and maybe this year (2024) people expected more evolution from me. Maybe this is one important point of this year: to try to evolve year after year.&rdquo;
Jess Whittington for World Athletics

At the age of just 19, the Italian jumps talent became an Olympic medallist, a world indoor medallist, a European medallist and a world U20 record-holder

Rising Star Furlani's leaps of confidence

Sembo Almayew is a rising star who has steadily been soaring since making her major international debut as a 17-year-old at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon in 2022.
Since then, the Ethiopian steeplechase specialist has become a world U20 champion and an Olympic finalist, those achievements contributing to her being named Women&rsquo;s Rising Star at the World Athletics Awards 2024 in Monaco in December.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/67768bc8af3e5ee68047caf6.JPG" alt="Rising Stars Mattia Furlani and Sembo Almayew on stage at the World Athletics Awards 2024" />
Rising Stars Mattia Furlani and Sembo Almayew on stage at the World Athletics Awards 2024 (&copy; World Athletics)
</div>
There she was joined by the likes of Olympic champions Sifan Hassan and Letsile Tebogo &ndash; named the <a href="https://worldathletics.org/awards/news/hassan-tebogo-world-athletics-awards-2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">overall World Athletes of the Year</a> &ndash; and now Almayew has ambitions of following in their footsteps to claim a global senior medal of her own.
&ldquo;This year, at the Olympics, I was thinking I could finish in the top three, but that day was not my day &ndash; I could not achieve a medal,&rdquo; reflected Almayew, who finished fifth in the 3000m steeplechase at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the age of just 19.
&ldquo;This year, I am going to try to at least get medals, or to win.
&ldquo;I am very happy to have met Sifan here and be talking to her,&rdquo; added Almayew, who named Olympic marathon champion Hassan and her fellow Athlete of the Year nominee Faith Kipyegon, the three-time Olympic 1500m gold medallist, as athletes who inspire her.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/674ca0695a7474627ee8ce71.JPG" alt="World Athletics Awards 2024" />
World Athletics Awards 2024 (&copy; World Athletics)
</div>
Almayew has already emulated 2012 1500m winner Kipyegon at U20 level on the track, having added her age-group gold from Lima in August to the silver medal she secured in Cali in 2022.
The Ethiopian teenager is among a select group of athletes to have competed at both the World U20 Championships and that year&rsquo;s respective major senior competition at the past two opportunities: the World Athletics Championships before the World U20 Championships in 2022, and the Paris 2024 Olympics before the World U20 Championships in 2024. During the year in between, she made the 3000m steeplechase final at the World Championships in Budapest.&nbsp;
&ldquo;For my result in Lima, plus the Olympics Games, to have these chances I give thanks to God,&rdquo; Almayew said through an interpreter when asked about her Olympic experience. &ldquo;To already be at the Olympics at my age, I am very happy. To finish top five looks good for me at this age.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/66bddd370f3a7fdd92bb2549.jpg" alt="Sembo Almayew in the 3000m steeplechase final in Paris" />
Sembo Almayew in the 3000m steeplechase final in Paris (&copy; Dan Vernon)
</div>
But this is not the first year in which Almayew has been doing great things for her age. In 2022, in the lead up to making her World Championships debut in Oregon, she ran 9:09.19 to finish second at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Paris, improving her own world U18 best of 9:18.98 she had set in Hengelo 12 days prior.&nbsp;
At the World U20 Championships in Cali she secured her silver medal behind Kenya&rsquo;s 2023 Rising Star Faith Cherotich, who has already gone on to become an Olympic and world bronze medallist.
Then, in Florence in 2023, Almayew clinched her first Diamond League win, setting an Ethiopian U20 record of 9:00.71. She followed that by finishing 12th in the world final in Budapest. That Florence performance places Almayew third on the world U20 all-time list and 15th on the senior list, and the 19-year-old was just 0.12 off that mark at the Paris Olympics, where she finished fifth, 23 days before winning her world U20 title.
Almayew is part of a talented athletics family and she wasn&rsquo;t the only sibling to get a medal in Lima. Her 16-year-old sister Marta won the world U20 cross country title in Belgrade in March and later added a track medal to her haul, becoming a world U20 3000m bronze medallist the day after Sembo claimed her steeplechase title.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/67768c5caf3e5ee68047caf9.jpg" alt="Sembo Almayew celebrates her world U20 title in Lima" />
Sembo Almayew celebrates her world U20 title in Lima (&copy; Oscar Munoz Badilla)
</div>
&ldquo;Our family is talented in athletics,&rdquo; explained Sembo, who set a championship record to become Ethiopia&rsquo;s first ever world U20 women&rsquo;s steeplechase champion. &ldquo;Four of my sisters run.
&ldquo;First, I was a 1500m runner, but I did a small steeplechase race. In the 1500m I was fourth and my coach advised me to run the steeplechase race. Without any training, I got third place.&rdquo;
Sembo was inspired by her older sister Mesegan to take up athletics and has received strong support from her family, particularly her father who used to do athletics at school. Previously guided by Birhanu Mekonnen, Sembo is now coached by Hussein Shibo and is targeting the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing as well as the World Championships in Tokyo in 2025.
She will undoubtedly already be inspiring the next generation of athletes with her performances and asked for her advice to them, Sembo replied: &ldquo;If young athletes can work hard, tomorrow they can get my chance of today.&rdquo;
Jess Whittington for World Athletics

Sembo Almayew is a rising star who has steadily been soaring since making her major international debut as a 17-year-old

Rising Star Almayew ready to soar

Tamirat Tola earned Ethiopia&rsquo;s only gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics with an extraordinary performance in the men&rsquo;s marathon.
On a uniquely testing course, and in gruelling conditions, he won gold in an Olympic record of 2:06:26 &ndash; a performance that was all the more remarkable for the fact that he had only been called into the team with two weeks&rsquo; notice as a replacement for his injured compatriot Sisay Lemma.
The 33-year-old, who earned Olympic bronze over 10,000m in 2016, thus added a second global marathon title to his collection after his victory at the 2022 World Athletics Championships.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/66b72e51553963b671cc1242.jpg" alt="Tamirat Tola wins the marathon at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games" />
Tamirat Tola wins the marathon at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games (&copy; Christel Saneh for World Athletics )
</div>
 
<h2>Tola&rsquo;s 2024 in numbers</h2>
With the hills, and the heat, it was tough enough to run on the Paris marathon course. But you set an Olympic record of 2:06:26. How did you manage this feat?
&ldquo;It was a very difficult course in Paris. But the only thought in my mind was that I could not lose. Our country had won no gold medals on the track, and the marathon races were the last chance for us, so I needed to make the most of my talent.&rdquo;
&nbsp;
Many athletes found the steep hills and long descents of the Paris course the toughest they had faced, particularly around the 28km mark. Where did it hurt most for you?
&ldquo;It was hardest from 27 to 30 kilometres, with the steep hill and the long drop. I wasn&rsquo;t thinking about the time, but when I finished I had the Olympic record, which was another reason to be proud.
&ldquo;My coach had told me that this was a very difficult course, so when I arrived in Paris I thought about how I could run my best on this course. I used this challenge as motivation, and thankfully I overcame it.
&ldquo;In athletics, challenges are part of the sport. And we always have to do the best for our country.&rdquo;
&nbsp;
This was your second global marathon title following your success at the 2022 World Championships. How did the two victories compare?
&ldquo;In 2022 it was not easy, all the champions were also there. In the past I had been concentrating on the 10,000m, which led to the Olympic bronze medal in 2016. After that I won the marathon silver at the 2017 World Championships in London.
&ldquo;I improved my talent in 2022 to win the gold medal. I was happy at that time because after a long injury I was able to win for my country.
&ldquo;In 2023 I lost that title because of a problem with my stomach. But that made it all the more amazing to fulfil my goals at the Olympics in Paris.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/62d44d211e279df31a804ad1.jpg" alt="Tamirat Tola wins the world marathon title in a championship record in Oregon" />
Tamirat Tola wins the world marathon title in a championship record in Oregon (&copy; Getty Images)
</div>
&nbsp;
You had just two weeks to prepare after being told you were running in the Olympic marathon following the withdrawal of Sisay Lemma, after which you stepped up as the third Ethiopian entrant alongside Deresa Geleta and Kenenisa Bekele. How did you manage this challenge?
&ldquo;For three months together with Kenenisa, Lemma, Deresa and I prepared for the national team. At that time my coach said, &lsquo;prepare with them, and if you are not needed for Paris then go to do the New York City marathon&rsquo;.
&ldquo;When I heard the news that I was on the team, I was really excited for the following two weeks. But for Sisay, it wasn&rsquo;t an easy decision because it was for our country. We discussed it with him and he said, &lsquo;It won&rsquo;t be easy for me to run injured in Paris, so you go&rsquo;.
&ldquo;When I got to Paris, I was thinking about how I could challenge (Eliud) Kipchoge and other athletes. I knew the main contenders. There were lots of talented athletes.
&ldquo;But I reminded myself that I had worked hard. And when I got in front in the final kilometres, I knew I could win.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6765842f6461240cfad541f2.jpg" alt="Tamirat Tola in the marathon at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games" />
Tamirat Tola in the marathon at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games (&copy; Getty Images)
</div>
 
In Paris you became the fourth Ethiopian to win the Olympic marathon title after Abebe Bikila in 1960 and 1964, Mamo Wolde in 1968 and Gezahegne Abera in 2000. How proud are you to have done this, and what inspiration did you take from your victorious compatriots?
&ldquo;I did not expect to win because I knew there were runners there like Eliud Kipchoge, the two-time winner. But once I got ahead, I knew I could do it.
&ldquo;For a long time after Gezahegne, for 24 years, we were without an Ethiopian win in the men&rsquo;s marathon at the Olympics. I was happy to attain this goal in a Games record and to join the other Olympic champions.
&ldquo;It was Ethiopia&rsquo;s only gold medal in Paris &ndash; I was able to provide happiness for our country.&rdquo;
Mike Rowbottom for World Athletics

Tamirat Tola earned Ethiopia’s only gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics

World out-of-stadium athlete of the year Tamirat Tola’s 2024 – in numbers

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone was named women&rsquo;s track athlete of the year at the World Athletics Awards 2024 in Monaco after a season in which she twice lowered her own world 400m hurdles record and retained her Olympic title.
At this summer&rsquo;s Paris Games, she also helped the United States make a successful defence of the women&rsquo;s 4x400m title.
McLaughlin-Levrone&rsquo;s first world record of the year came at the US Olympic Trials which she won in 50.65, taking 0.03 off the world record she had set on the same track two years earlier in securing the world title.
In Paris, the day after her 25th birthday, she lowered that mark to 50.37 to add a second Olympic 400m hurdles gold to the one she had won three years earlier in Tokyo.
She followed up by running the second leg for a US 4x400m relay team that won gold in a North American record of 3:15.27, the second-fastest time in history and just 0.10 shy of the long-standing world record.
Speaking on stage with her award at the Theatre Princess Grace, McLaughlin-Levrone commented: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s an honour to come here to have the season that the team have had together be recognised. We are always going to find something we can improve.
&ldquo;It was an amazing year. I&rsquo;m so grateful being able to be healthy coming back after last year. The ultimately glory goes to God. I am so super-honoured to be here.
Asked about her targets for next year, she replied with a smile: &ldquo;I honestly don&rsquo;t really know! Mondo&rsquo;s already training. Maybe I should be!&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6762a4b0312ca00b3d84dce8.jpg" alt="Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone at the 2024 World Athletics Awards" />
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone at the 2024 World Athletics Awards (&copy; Christel Saneh for World Athletics)
</div>
<h2> McLaughlin-Levrone&rsquo;s 2024 in numbers</h2>
You broke the world 400m hurdles record twice in 2024, taking it from 50.68 to 50.65, and then 50.37. Do you think going below 50 seconds is now a possibility?
&ldquo;That definitely is on my mind for sure. An athlete would naturally want to do that. Whether that happens or not is up to God. I&rsquo;m just going to work for it, I can&rsquo;t put a number on it.
&ldquo;It may be me, or maybe an athlete in five or 10 years from now. So I&rsquo;m just going to continue to try to be the best I can be and if it comes it comes, and if it doesn&rsquo;t, it doesn&rsquo;t.
&ldquo;But I think for me it&rsquo;s just the desire to improve. Every time you go back to the table and look at it, there is always something you can do better. It&rsquo;s exciting in the hurdles, that there is always something you can improve on.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6762ab0bb43c1ec381e7e2b0.jpg" alt="Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone wins the 400m hurdles at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games" />
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone wins the 400m hurdles at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games (&copy; AFP / Getty Images)
</div>
 
You have now set six consecutive world records in the women&rsquo;s 400m hurdles. Do you have a favourite?
&ldquo;I think you can&rsquo;t ever beat the first time,&rdquo; she said, referring to her mark of 51.90 set at the US Olympic Trials in Eugene three years ago, which beat the record of 52.16 compatriot Dalilah Muhammad had set in beating her to the 2019 world title.
&ldquo;It was the first moment of realising that my childhood dreams came true. Going under 52, all that hard work, seeing it come to fruition &ndash; I don&rsquo;t think I&rsquo;ll ever get past it.
&ldquo;Realising that barrier was possible to break. Learning about myself as an athlete. That race, for me, was the stepping stone. We then were able to see that we could push this further and further.&rdquo;
&nbsp;
You ran 47.71 on the second leg as the United States won the Olympic 4x400m title in 3:15.27, the second-fastest time in history. You have also run 48.74 in individual competition, just 0.04 off the US record. How do you see your 400m flat running progressing?
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s always amazing to run with those ladies. We are really together now and we have our own training situations. Representing the USA together and getting that gold in Paris was just a really special moment.
&ldquo;The 400m flat almost hurts a bit more than the hurdles, to be honest. You&rsquo;re going faster and you definitely feel that. But I think the open 400m is very helpful in terms of speed endurance, and it&rsquo;s always very helpful to have those hurdles in your mind when you&rsquo;re running it.
&ldquo;So they&rsquo;re both great, and hopefully I will get some more opportunities next year to do some flat 400s.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6762ab3fb43c1ec381e7e2b6.jpg" alt="The US 4x400m team celebrates their victory at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games" />
The US 4x400m team celebrates their victory at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games (&copy; AFP / Getty Images)
</div>
 
The next summer Olympics in 2028 are due to take place in Los Angeles. Your thoughts?
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s super-exciting to be able to have the Games in LA, where I&rsquo;m training right now. I drive by the Coliseum at times and imagine what it is going to look like during the Olympics. I hope LA is going to be prepared for that moment. I know it will be. It&rsquo;s a really special opportunity to have the Olympics in our back yard.&rdquo;
&nbsp;
Only two women have broken 51 seconds for the 400m hurdles &ndash; you and Femke Bol. How do you rate her as competition and how do you see your rivalry playing out in the next few years?
&ldquo;I think every athlete is focused on themselves, to be honest, because you still have to jump over those 10 hurdles. Obviously Femke is a wonderful competitor and there are so many women in our event that are just getting faster and faster. So you always have to show respect for your opposition because you never know what anyone is going to produce on any given day.
&ldquo;But like I said, it&rsquo;s you against you. And you have to be prepared to be at your highest level when you step on the track, because our event is going to heights I don&rsquo;t think any of us imagined &ndash; which is amazing because we are all just pushing one another to be the best. And I am really happy to be a part of this transition.&rdquo;
&nbsp;
You have said that moments after winning the 400m hurdles world title in 2022, you experienced the worst physical pain of your life. Was the post-race pain better or worse in Paris?
&ldquo;Believe it or not, it actually was better in Paris, although still very painful! But I think my body got used to 50-point and what it felt like going into shock.
&ldquo;In Paris it was a bit better for sure because I knew what to expect. So the second half of the race and what that felt like was a little bit better this time around.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6762ab1eb43c1ec381e7e2b3.jpg" alt="Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone in Paris" />
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone in Paris (&copy; AFP / Getty Images)
</div>
 
You have achieved enormous success in your career so far. What is the one thing you have found hardest?
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think this will be a shock to the media but I think that for me would be the media and their opinions and stories of you they write. I know it&rsquo;s their job to get an interesting story, but their story may not always reflect the truth.
&ldquo;To any young athlete who is still very impressionable and trying to discover who they are, having the whole world have an opinion about them can be a little overwhelming.
&ldquo;And I think that&rsquo;s something that can be very difficult, especially on the world stage when you see articles that are written about you that are not true, and things that are posted about you that are not true.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s very easy to let that get into your mind, into your performance, and I think that&rsquo;s something I tell young athletes all the time that is just something you have to be aware of what you let into your mind and into your circle. Because it can affect you.&rdquo;
Mike Rowbottom for World Athletics

A numerical look back at Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's 2024 season

World track athlete of the year Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone’s 2024 – in numbers

Mondo Duplantis, named as the men&rsquo;s field athlete of the year at the World Athletics Awards 2024, has further adorned his status as the greatest male pole vaulter with another year of dizzying achievement.
After retaining his world indoor title in Glasgow, the Swedish phenomenon &ndash; who only turned 25 on 10 November &ndash; went on to tick all the boxes as he set three more world records, bringing his total to 10.
The first came at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Xiamen on 20 April, when he cleared 6.24m. Next came the ultimate athletic experience as he retained his Olympic title with a clearance of 6.25m in a packed Stade de France in which he was not only the last man standing in his event, but the last athlete competing on the night.
Twenty days later, at the Silesia Diamond League meeting, he added a further centimetre to his best mark.
Duplantis also retained his European title in Rome thanks to a championship record of 6.10m.
And he also found time to win a personal 100m challenge with Norway&rsquo;s world 400m hurdles champion and world record-holder Karsten Warholm in a race that took place during the Zurich Diamond League meeting. Duplantis clocked 10.37 &ndash; underlining the speed he has on tap to convert into height&hellip;
In a recorded message played at the Theatre Princess Grace when his latest award was announced, Duplantis &ndash; who was training in the United States &ndash; paid tribute to his mother Helena, a former heptathlete and volleyball player, and his father Greg, a former pole vaulter with a best of 5.80m.
&ldquo;This is always special and hard to wrap my head around,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I am very appreciative. There is nothing more important than an Olympic year for us athletes, so I&rsquo;m grateful things worked out the way they did and I performed the way I did.
&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t give enough thanks to my family who are my team &ndash; my mum and dad are my trainer and technical coach. I couldn&rsquo;t be in the situation I&rsquo;m in today without them, fighting for world and Olympic gold medals and doing other things I&rsquo;ve dreamed of since I was a little kid.
&ldquo;Right now I&rsquo;m back here in the United States working for next year.
&ldquo;Thanks so much &ndash; this award truly means so much to me and my family.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/66b12b4d3b4bba6b2abdb529.jpg" alt="Mondo Duplantis at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games" />
Mondo Duplantis at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games (&copy; Dan Vernon)
</div>
<h2> Duplantis&rsquo;s 2024 in numbers</h2>
After retaining your Olympic title at the Paris 2024 Games in front of a huge crowd in the Stade de France, you raised your world record by a centimetre when you cleared 6.25m on your third attempt. How did that feel to you?
"It was one of those things that don&rsquo;t really feel real, such an out-of-body experience. I had just broken a world record at the Olympics &ndash; the biggest possible stage for a pole vaulter.
&ldquo;The biggest dream since I was a kid was to break the world record at the Olympics, and I&rsquo;d been able to do that in front of the most ridiculous crowd I&rsquo;ve ever competed in front of."
&nbsp;
You have now set 10 consecutive world pole vault records. Did you feel something of this kind might happen once you had set your first one when you cleared 6.17m in Torun in February 2020, then 6.18m a week later in Glasgow?
&ldquo;It was very important to me to show that the first world record wasn&rsquo;t a fluke. It was like &lsquo;This was what&rsquo;s to come. This is what I am, this is the level I am competing at&rsquo;. I didn&rsquo;t just happen to get over the 6.17m.
&ldquo;I wanted to show that I could do the next one, and do it even easier than the first one.&rdquo;
&nbsp;
Your most recent world record, set in Silesia, was 6.26m. You&rsquo;ll never guess this question. Oh yes you will. How much higher can you go?
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve said numerous times that I want to jump over 6.30m. Because I think that&rsquo;s very possible and it just seems like the next real barrier to get over for pole vaulters in general.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s something that can happen when everything just comes together in the right way, but I don&rsquo;t think about it so much, honestly. I think I will just let it come, and it will just come.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/66e1c48c98560f77a695b07d.jpg" alt="Mondo Duplantis in Continental Tour Gold action" />
Mondo Duplantis in Continental Tour Gold action (&copy; Sona Maleterova)
</div>
&nbsp;
You tend to have seven or eight poles in your bag. How does this number work for you?
&ldquo;I am always trying to use stiffer and stronger poles. If I can put more energy into a stiffer pole it is going to fling me up higher. It&rsquo;s going to catapult me up there.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m always trying to improve that aspect and to use different poles. There always seems to be a pole for the year &ndash; one I did my good jumps on.&rdquo;
&nbsp;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/66c642126265d4433918343a.jpg" alt="Mondo Duplantis at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Lausanne" />
Mondo Duplantis at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Lausanne (&copy; AFP / Getty Images)
</div>
&nbsp;
Reflecting on your 10th and most recent world record, the 6.26m you cleared at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Silesia on 25 August, how close to the perfect jump did it feel?
&ldquo;My first world record also came in Poland, indoors in Torun, so I had great memories from there. The track was wonderful, the conditions were perfect, everything just came together to allow me to do it.
&ldquo;It is just about being in good shape and believing you can do it. I always want to jump as high as I possibly can and to keep pushing. But I have never hit a jump that felt absolutely perfect, so I always feel like I can do better.&rdquo;
Mike Rowbottom for World Athletics

Mondo Duplantis has further adorned his status as the greatest male pole vaulter with another year of dizzying achievement

Finalists announced for Fair Play Award

Finalists announced for 2025 World Athletics Photograph of the Year

Finalists announced for 2025 Women's Rising Star Award

Finalists announced for 2025 Men's Rising Star Award

Finalists announced for 2025 Athlete of the Year awards