<p>The ability to overcome challenges appears to be part of Almaz Ayana&rsquo;s DNA.</p>
<p>By working hard to climb to the summit of global distance running, despite hailing from a modest rural background, to triumphing in the 10,000m on her season&rsquo;s debut at the IAAF World Championships London 2017, no challenge appears beyond the capability of the world and Olympic 10,000m champion.</p>
<p>Yet the latest task to return to full fitness after undergoing surgery on both knees is, arguably, Ayana&rsquo;s greatest obstacle to date as she builds up for what she hope will be a successful defence of her world 10,000m title in Doha on 28 September.</p>
<p>Born the seventh youngest of nine siblings in western Ethiopia, Ayana first engaged in running when registering for a school race at about the age of 13 or 14.</p>
<p>Having no clue as to how she would perform, she recalled finishing &ldquo;second or third&rdquo; over 1500m but faced a significant obstacle to her progress.</p>
<p>&ldquo;When I started racing there was a girl at my school who always finished number one,&rdquo; explains the quietly-spoken and unfailingly polite Ayana. &ldquo;I was afraid of that girl but somebody told me that I have to beat her. I listened to that person, beat that girl and later joined a project (a training group for beginners) in my local area.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Encouraged by how hard work could reap rewards, she moved to Addis Ababa and joined the Defence Force Club. A coach there advised her to try the steeplechase and she quickly advanced to the international level. In 2010 she placed fifth in the steeplechase at the IAAF World U20 Championships in Moncton, Canada and later that year shattered the world U20 record with a stunning 9:22.51 for third in Brussels.<br /><br /></p>
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Almaz Ayana (254) in the steeplechase at the IAAF World U20 Championships Moncton 2010</div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Yet since she was a young girl, inspired by listening to the feats of Ethiopian distance running legend Tirunesh Dibaba on the radio, Ayana dreamed of starring in another event.</p>
<h3>New discipline</h3>
<p>&ldquo;I always wanted to be a 5000m athlete,&rdquo; she says.</p>
<p>Marrying her husband, 2011 African 1500m bronze medallist Soresa Fida, in 2011 provided the impetus for a switch in approach.</p>
<p>Ayana left the Defence Force Club and in 2012 Fida took over the coaching reins, and so began the work to remodel the long-striding Ethiopian from a steeplechaser to a 5000m and 10,000m athlete.</p>
<p>&ldquo;I previously did just what the coach told me but now (under Fida&rsquo;s guidance) I have a lot more input into training and I really listen to my body,&rdquo; explains Ayana, who is deeply devoted Orthodox Christian.</p>
<p>The 2013 campaign hinted at her hugely exciting potential. Now training twice a day for six days a week and combining energy-sapping long runs with punishing speed session, Ayana earned 5000m bronze behind her compatriot Meseret Defar at the IAAF World Championships in Moscow.<br /><br /></p>
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Almaz Ayana after the 5000m at the IAAF World Championships Moscow 2013</div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>African and Continental Cup 5000m victories followed in 2014 but it was the 2015 campaign when Ayana emerged as a world-class star. In Shanghai she ran a blistering 14:14.32 performance to climb to third on the world all-times list &ndash; behind Dibaba and Defar &ndash; with the kind of fearless front-running performance which has become her signature.</p>
<p>Then at the World Championships in Beijing later that year, a blistering final 3000m of 8:19 enabled Ayana to quell the considerable threat of compatriot Genzebe Dibaba to bank 5000m gold inside the crucible of the Bird&rsquo;s Nest Stadium.</p>
<p>In 2016 the Ethiopian then entered another realm by obliterating the 23-year-old world 10,000m record by more than 14 seconds with a jaw-dropping time of 29:17.45 to claim the Olympic title in Rio.<br /><br /></p>
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Almaz Ayana wins the 10,000m at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games</div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&ldquo;The preparation before Rio went really well,&rdquo; explains Fida, who cites Ayana&rsquo;s long rhythmic stride coupled with her appetite for hard work as what singles her out from her opponents.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Almaz was running so quickly in training, I couldn&rsquo;t follow her.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Ongoing shin splints issues threatened to derail her entire 2017 campaign. Yet despite not having one single pre-event competition prior to the World Championships in London, she defied logic to strike 10,000m gold by a 46-second winning margin, thanks to a staggering second half split of 14:24.95.</p>
<p>Understandably fatigued from her herculean efforts in the 10,000m, she had to settle for 5000m silver behind Kenyan Hellen Obiri before she ended her season in style with victory on her half marathon debut in New Delhi in 1:07:12.</p>
<p>However, on her return from India she felt a pain in both knees and abandoned plans to compete in the 15km Seven Hills race in the Netherlands. The pain just would not subside and weeks became months as she sought a resolution to the increasingly frustrating problem.</p>
<p>&ldquo;I visited many doctors,&rdquo; explains Ayana. &ldquo;It was very demoralising and I was very down.&rdquo;</p>
<h3>Under the knife</h3>
<p>It was finally discovered she required career-saving surgery on both knees. Utilising the renowned skills of world-class knee specialist surgeon Dr Roland Biedert, Ayana underwent the surgery in Bern, Switzerland in July last year.</p>
<p>&ldquo;The doctor did not give a recovery percentage but he said you will come back,&rdquo; explains Ayana, who was reassured by his words. &ldquo;I actually felt happy after the operation because I knew at least the problem had been fixed.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Spending two months post-surgery recuperating in Switzerland, where she carried out 30 minutes of exercises a day, the road to recovery has been slow and it has required a significant amount of patience.</p>
<p>She finally discarded the crutches three months after surgery and worked on a fastidious exercise rehabilitation programme with her Dutch physiotherapist, Sjors Schipaanboord.</p>
<p>Initially walking for 10 minutes, she finally returned to running late last year with gentle five-minute jogs on the treadmill.</p>
<p>&ldquo;I was afraid to run because I was scared of how my knees would respond,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t know if I would feel pain.&rdquo;<br /><br /></p>
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Almaz Ayana at the IAAF World Championships London 2017</div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Over time, the pain has diminished and she is back to training six days a week. At the Prefontaine Classic in Stanford earlier this month she made a tentative return to her first competition in 19 months, finishing 18th in the 3000m in 8:57.16 &ndash; almost 35 seconds down on her PB for the distance &ndash; but crucially survived unscathed.</p>
<p>&ldquo;I was not very happy with the result but the pain is getting less and less in the knee,&rdquo; explains Ayana, who puts her current fitness level at about 30 per cent.</p>
<p>Unsure as to where her next competition will be, the Ethiopian superstar still has time to round into better shape for the defence of her world 10,000m title in Doha. And, as she showed in London two years ago, Ayana has proved the master of the seemingly impossible.</p>
<p>Aged just 27, only a fool would dismiss Ayana&rsquo;s chances. Crucially, the Ethiopian herself has the belief that she can prosper again in future.</p>
<p>&ldquo;I know I can come back,&rdquo; she says. &ldquo;I will try to continue to strengthen both knees. I know anything can be achieved with patience.&rdquo;</p>
<p><strong>Steve Landells for the IAAF</strong></p>

The ability to overcome challenges appears to be part of Almaz Ayana’s DNA.

Ayana remains optimistic in countdown to Doha

<p>Ahead of the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Rabat, we showcase Africa and highlight a quintet of performers from the continent who have excelled on the elite one-day international circuit.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h3>Blessing Okagbare</h3>
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Blessing Okagbare at the 2013 IAAF Diamond League in London</div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>No athlete has appeared in more IAAF Diamond League events than Blessing Okagbare. At the latest count, the Nigerian had made a staggering 69 competitive starts in the 100m, 200m and long jump and claimed some 47 scoring finishes since making her IAAF Diamond League debut in 2010.</p>
<p>Her most noteworthy achievement came during an electric 2013 campaign when in London she set not one but two African 100m records on the same day, backing up a 10.86 run in the heat with a blistering 10.79 performance in the final.</p>
<h3><br />Beatrice Chepkoech</h3>
<p><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KINmrMrOlWU" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
<p>Sometimes it is the raw numbers rather than the words which best encapsulate the quality of the performance. So when Beatrice Chepkoech ran 8:44.32 to set a world 3000m steeplechase record in Monaco last year, she had made a staggering 15-second advance on her PB and wiped a mind-boggling eight seconds from the existing world record.</p>
<p>Only a wrong turn at the water jump at the IAAF World Championships London 2017 denied the Kenyan a probable medal in the British capital but few would have predicted the Beamonesque savaging Chepkoech would make of the world record mark.</p>
<h3><br />Wayde van Niekerk</h3>
<p><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/G2i2bapxo6g" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
<p>The South African sprint marvel&rsquo;s two finest two 400m performances were delivered on the global championship stage; when winning the 2015 world title in Beijing in 43.48 and when pocketing Olympic gold in Rio courtesy of that mind-blowing world record time of 43.03.</p>
<p>Yet his IAAF Diamond League performances have been not too shabby. Three times he has busted the 44-second mark with the highlight a storming IAAF Diamond League record of 43.62 in Lausanne.</p>
<h3><br />Almaz Ayana</h3>
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<p>The owner of three of the six fastest 5000m marks in history and all achieved at IAAF Diamond League events sums up the Ethiopian&rsquo;s significant imprint on the premier elite one-day circuit.</p>
<p>The former steeplechaser first emerged as a star of the future by running a sensational 14:14.32 in Shanghai in 2015 &ndash; a performance which elevated her at the time to third on the world all-time 5000m list.</p>
<p>The following year she blitzed to a 14:16.31 clocking in Rabat and 11 days later recorded a PB of 14:12.59 in Rome to climb to second place on the world all-time list, 1.44 seconds behind her compatriot Tirunesh Dibaba.</p>
<h3><br />Conseslus Kipruto</h3>
<p><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JiDxhP_Na4I" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
<p>The world and Olympic steeplechase champion has owned the event in recent times and his IAAF Diamond League record is particularly convincing.</p>
<p>Across the course of his glittering career, the 24-year-old has registered no fewer than 15 steeplechase wins on the IAAF Diamond League circuit and snagged four overall titles in 2013, 2016, 2017 and 2018.</p>
<p>Yet perhaps his most impressive victory to date came in the 2018 IAAF Diamond League final in Zurich when he shrugged off the inconvenience of running for much of the race with one shoe to pip Morocco&rsquo;s Soufiane El Bakkali and clinch victory.</p>
<p><strong><br />Steve Landells for the IAAF</strong></p>

Ahead of the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Rabat, we showcase Africa and highlight a quintet of performers from the continent who have excelled on the elite one-day international circuit.

Fab five: African Diamond League stars

<p>The greatest field of women distance runners ever assembled on US soil will step to the starting line for the Prefontaine Classic 3000m when the <strong>IAAF Diamond League</strong> heads to Stanford on 30 June.</p>
<p>World 5000m and cross-country champion Hellen Obiri will be making her sixth appearance at the Prefontaine Classic. She set meeting records at 1500m in 2013 and 2014, then won the 5000m in 2016.</p>
<p>The Kenyan, who won the 5000m IAAF Diamond League title in 2018, is undefeated this year and won the 3000m at the opening leg of the IAAF Diamond League in Doha earlier this month in a world-leading 8:25.60.</p>
<p>Multiple world record-holder and five-time world indoor champion Genzebe Dibaba has won all three of her past Pre Classic appearances and her 14:19.76 victory in 2015 is the fastest 5000m ever run in the US.</p>
<p>Sifan Hassan won the 1500m Diamond League trophy in 2015 and followed it with world indoor gold over the same distance in 2016. The Dutch athlete is one of the most versatile runners in history, boasting an 800m PB of 1:56.81 and a half marathon PB of 1:05:15. She also holds the European 5000m record and the world 5km record.</p>
<p>Olympic 10,000m champion and world record-holder Almaz Ayana will be competing in the US for the first time. The Ethiopian won the 2015 world 5000m title, 2016 5000m Diamond Trophy and 2017 world 10,000m title, but missed all of last year with a knee injury.</p>
<p>Obiri, Dibaba, Ayana and Hassan are among the seven fastest women of all time at 5000m, but this will be the first time they have all raced one another at any distance.</p>
<p>The addition of world and Olympic 800m champion Caster Semenya adds further interest. Although she has contested the distance in low-key domestic races in South Africa, this will be her first international 3000m race.</p>
<p>Ethiopia&rsquo;s Letesenbet Gidey and Senbere Teferi, ranked eighth and ninth respectively on the world 5000m all-time list, are also in the field. Gidey is a two-time world U20 cross-country champion, while Teferi earned world silver medals at 5000m and cross country in 2015.</p>
<p>The field also includes two-time Ethiopian champion Fantu Worku, versatile Kenyan Caroline Chepkoech Kipkurui, world U20 cross-country champion Beatrice Chebet, 2017 world cross-country bronze medallist Lilian Kasait Rengeruk, double European indoor silver medallist Konstanze Klosterhalfen, 2016 European 5000m and 10,000m champion Yasmin Can, European 1500m bronze medallist Laura Weightman, six-time NCAA champion Karissa Schweizer and USA&rsquo;s Rachel Schneider.</p>
<p><strong>Organisers for the IAAF</strong></p>

The greatest field of women distance runners ever assembled on US soil will step to the starting line for the Prefontaine Classic 3000m when the IAAF Diamond League heads to Stanford on 30 June.

Five global champions set to clash over 3000m in Stanford – IAAF Diamond League

<p>Ethiopia&rsquo;s Birhanu Legese and Almaz Ayana took the honours at the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon, crossing the line in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in 59:46 and 1:07:11 respectively to win the <strong>IAAF Gold Label</strong> road race on Sunday (19).</p>
<p>Legese, now 23, regained the title he won two years ago after pulling away from four rivals in the final 500 metres.</p>
<p>Teenage compatriot Adamlak Belihu followed Legese home and clocked 59:51 on his debut over the distance. Despite having to settle for second on this occasion, it was still a stunning performance from Belihu who turns just 19 on Monday.</p>
<p>Leonard Korir finished third in 59:52, the second-fastest time ever by a US runner and just nine seconds shy of the North American record.</p>
<p>Entering the final kilometre, any one of five men could have still potentially won and all five finished within one hour, with another four within 61 minutes to provide a race of memorable depth and quality.</p>
<p>Ethiopia&rsquo;s Asefa Negewo bettered the 60-minute barrier for the first time when finishing fourth in 59:54 to take more than a minute off his best, while Kenya&rsquo;s Jorum Okumbo, still only 19, was fifth in 59:58.</p>
<p>Geoffrey Kirui had his first race since winning the world marathon title but lacked just a little bit of sharpness compared to his rivals and slipped out of contention late in the race before coming home sixth in 1:00:04.</p>
<p>World and Olympic 10,000m champion Ayana was making her debut over the half marathon distance but hardly looked like a novice as she led home an Ethiopian clean sweep of the podium positions in the women&rsquo;s race.</p>
<p>Like in the men&rsquo;s race, the outcome was decided in the final kilometre as she pulled away from her rivals on the approach to the stadium.</p>
<p>Ababel Yeshaneh was second again, as she was in 2016, and set a personal best for the second consecutive year as well, crossing the line in 1:07:19 to slice 33 seconds from her personal best.</p>
<p>Completing the all-Ethiopian top three, Netsanet Gudeta clocked 1:07:24 to improve her best by seven seconds.</p>
<p>Finishing further down the order, there were huge cheers and delight for Indian international Loganathan Suriya in eighth place.</p>
<p>Suriya missed out on medals at the Asian Championships in July when she finished fourth in the 5000m and 10,000m and failed to secure a place in the Indian team going to the IAAF World Championships the following month.</p>
<p>However, she got partial compensation for those disappointments when she finished in an Indian half marathon record of 1:10:29, taking 33 seconds off the record set by Lalita Babar at the 2015 edition of this race.</p>
<p>Her performance should be good enough to secure her a place on the start line of the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships Valencia 2018 in March, which would be her first global championship outing</p>
<p><strong>Organisers for the IAAF</strong></p>
<h3>Leading results</h3>
<p><strong>Men</strong><br /> 1 Birhanu Legese (ETH) 59:46<br /> 2 Andamlak Belihu (ETH) 59:51<br /> 3 Leonard Korir (USA) 59:52<br /> 4 Asefa Negewo (ETH) 59:54<br /> 5 Jorum Okumbo (KEN) 59:58<br /> 6 Geoffrey Kirui (KEN) 1:00:04<br /> 7 Edwin Kiptoo (KEN) 1:00:06<br /> 8 Abadi Hadis (ETH) 1:00:25<br /> 9 John Langat (ETH) 1:00:41<br /> 10 Nitendra Singh Rawat (IND) 1:03:53</p>
<p><strong>Women</strong><br /> 1 Almaz Ayana (ETH) 1:07:11<br /> 2 Ababel Yeshaneh (ETH) 1:07:19<br /> 3 Netsanet Gudeta (ETH) 1:07:24<br /> 4 Helah Kiprop (KEN) 1:08:07<br /> 5 Worknesh Degefa (ETH) 1:08:09<br /> 6 Paskalia Chepkorhir (KEN) 1:08:46<br /> 7 Veronica Nyaruai (KEN) 1:09:02<br /> 8 Loganathan Suriya (IND) 1:10:29<br /> 9 Daria Maslova (KGZ) 1:11:28<br /> 10 Sudha Singh (IND) 1:11:28</p>

Ethiopia’s Birhanu Legese and Almaz Ayana took the honours at the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon, crossing the line in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in 59:46 and 1:07:11 respectively to win the IAAF Gold Label road race on Sunday (19).

Legese and debutante Ayana secure Ethiopian double in Delhi 

<p>Fast times will be the obvious target of all the top runners at the 13th edition of the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon with 2017 world champions Geoffrey Kirui and Almaz Ayana both looking to make a big impact at the <strong>IAAF Gold Label </strong>road race on Sunday (19).</p>
<p>Both runners dodged diplomatically around the issue of whether they would beat the&nbsp;existing course records at the traditional pre-race press conference on Thursday, but the pair commented that they were in excellent shape and would not be on the start line in Delhi if they were not ready to run well.</p>
<p>The men&rsquo;s course record is 59:06 and was set by Ethiopia&rsquo;s Guye Adola in 2014 while the women&rsquo;s course record has stood since 2009 and belongs to Kenya&rsquo;s Mary Keitany at 1:06:54.</p>
<p>Kirui, who won the men&rsquo;s marathon at the IAAF World Championships London 2017 this summer, told the gathered media: &ldquo;If I compare myself to my last appearance here (in 2015), I&rsquo;m in much better shape and my body has got stronger than before.&rdquo;</p>
<p>The Kenyan runner was sixth in a high-quality affair two years ago, making a breakthrough with what remains his personal best of 59:38.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Running the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon is not going to be easy for me because some of my friends and fellow runners here have been running half marathons all the time," added Kirui.</p>
<p>&ldquo;This is my second time here and I&rsquo;m ready, but it entirely depends on how I am feeling Sunday. Today I&rsquo;m feeling good but Sunday may be a different day."</p>
<p>Despite his feats over the classic marathon distance this year, which also include a win at the Boston Marathon in April, Kirui has not actually run a competitive half marathon since his outing in Delhi two years ago.</p>
<p>Kirui is also not the fastest man in the field, which may explain his slight reticence on Thursday, as two of his compatriots have run quicker than the course record. The in-form Jorum Okumbo and Alex Korio ran 58:48 and 58:51 respectively in Copenhagen in September.</p>
<h3>Ayana cautiously optimistic on eve of eagerly anticipated debut</h3>
<p>Ethiopia&rsquo;s world and Olympic 10,000m champion and world record-holder Ayana will be making her half marathon debut on Sunday, in her first race since the World Championships in August.</p>
<p>&ldquo;After winning the World Championships, I have continued my training," said Ayana. "There aren&rsquo;t many good competitions, so I trained hard for the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon. Even though it&rsquo;s new territory, it&rsquo;s running, so I will do my best.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Having said that, while I will look to do well in the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon, my focus will remain on track events," she added. "I will see how my first half marathon goes and then decide if I want to do another."</p>
<p>Ayana will face her compatriot Worknesh Degefa, who is not only the defending champion but also the fastest woman in the field having clocked 1:06:14 in Prague last year.</p>
<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m happy to come to India to run because the weather is quite similar to back home, so I love it here," said Degefa. "The field is strong, Almaz is like my sister, she is my hero. I&rsquo;ll be very happy for her if she wins. Almaz is very fast and strong. It will be quite difficult to keep up with her."</p>
<p>All the leading runners will also have in their sights first prize cheques of US$27,000 with a total prize money purse (combined men and women) of US$275,000.</p>
<p><strong>Organisers for the IAAF</strong></p>

Fast times will be the obvious target of all the top runners at the 13th edition of the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon with 2017 world champions Geoffrey Kirui and Almaz Ayana both looking to make a big impact at the IAAF Gold Label road race on Sunday (19).

Kirui and Ayana predict fast times at Delhi Half Marathon

<p>Ahead of next week&rsquo;s IAAF Athletics Awards 2017 where the World Athletes of the Year will be announced, we revisit the achievements of the women&rsquo;s finalists.</p>
<h3>Almaz Ayana</h3>
<p>Injury forced the Ethiopian to postpone the start of her 2017 competitive campaign, meaning she arrived at the IAAF World Championships London 2017 having not competed all year.</p>
<p>But just minutes after the gun went for the 10,000m final, Ayana soon blew off the rust and reproduced the kind of dominant form that carried her to the Olympic title 12 months prior.</p>
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<p>After a conservative first half, Ayana increased her lead with each lap and covered the second half of the race in 14:25. She went on to win by 46 seconds, the biggest ever winning margin in that event at the World Championships, and clocked a world-leading 30:16.32.</p>
<p>She took the silver medal in the 5000m just eight days later, giving her the best collection of individual medals achieved by a woman at this year's World Championships.</p>
<h3>Ekaterini Stefanidi</h3>
<p>The Greek pole vaulter was undefeated outdoors this year. Her only loss of 2017 was an indoor competition in February; since then, she put together a string of 14 consecutive victories.</p>
<p><iframe style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FWorldAthleticsClub%2Fvideos%2F1504808192901346%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=400" width="400" height="225" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
<p>Her winning streak included the IAAF World Championships London 2017, where she cleared a world-leading national record of 4.91m to move to equal fourth on the world all-time list.</p>
<p>The 27-year-old also won at the European Indoor Championships in Belgrade and at all of her IAAF Diamond League appearances, including the final in Brussels. She also produced the three highest clearances of the year.</p>
<h3>Nafissatou Thiam</h3>
<p>The Belgian all-rounder started 2017 by winning the European indoor pentathlon title with a world-leading 4870.</p>
<p>Two months later, she climbed to third on the world heptathlon all-time list after winning at the IAAF Combined Events Challenge meeting in Gotzis with 7013 with a series that included a 1.98m high jump and a 59.32m javelin throw.</p>
<p><iframe style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FWorldAthleticsClub%2Fvideos%2F1504809282901237%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=400" width="400" height="225" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
<p>At the World Championships in London was not so much on big scores but on securing the gold medal. She lived up to expectation in all seven disciplines and earned the title with a score of 6784.</p>
<hr />
<h3><br />Voting procedure for 2017 World Athletes of the Year</h3>
<p>A three-way voting process determined the finalists. The IAAF Council and the IAAF Family cast their votes by email, while fans voted online via the IAAF&rsquo;s social media platforms. The IAAF Council&rsquo;s vote counted for 50% of the result, while the IAAF Family&rsquo;s votes and the public votes each counted for 25% of the final result. Voting closed on 16 October.</p>
<p>The World Athletes of the Year will be announced live on stage at the IAAF Athletics Awards 2017 in Monaco on Friday 24 November.</p>
<p><strong>IAAF</strong></p>

Ahead of next week’s IAAF Athletics Awards 2017 where the World Athletes of the Year will be announced, we revisit the achievements of the women’s finalists.

A closer look at the 2017 World Athlete of the Year women’s finalists 

<p>World champions Geoffrey Kirui and Almaz Ayana will headline the fields at the 13th Airtel Delhi Half Marathon, an <strong>IAAF Gold Label Road Race</strong>, on 19 November.</p>
<p>Kirui, who won the men&rsquo;s marathon at the IAAF World Championships London 2017 this summer, knows what the racing in Delhi is all about and is familiar with the picturesque circuit.</p>
<p>The Kenyan runner was sixth in a high-quality affair two years ago, the race which advertised that he was one of the rising stars of distance running, when he set his current personal best of 59:38.</p>
<p>By contrast, the reigning world 10,000m champion Ayana will be setting foot on Indian soil for the first time and will also be making her debut over the half marathon distance.</p>
<p>However, all eyes will be on the Ethiopian to see whether she can transfer her stunning form on the track in the last two years, which also saw her break the 10,000m world record when winning gold over 25 laps of the track in Rio, to the roads.</p>
<p>Both runners, and the rest of the elite field which was announced on Wednesday, will be chasing the very strong course records in Delhi.</p>
<p>The men&rsquo;s course record is 59:06 and was set by Ethiopia&rsquo;s Guye Adola in 2014 while the women&rsquo;s course record has been standing since 2009 and belongs to Kenya&rsquo;s Mary Keitany at 1:06:54.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, despite his fine credentials which also include a win in the Boston Marathon back in April, Kirui will not start as a prohibitive favourite.</p>
<p>Three of his compatriots have run under 59 minutes, with the in-form Jorum Okumbo the fastest man in the field having run 58:48 earlier this year, while Ethiopia&rsquo;s Yigrem Demelash was second in 2016 and determined to climb one step higher on the podium this time around.</p>
<p>In the women&rsquo;s race, Ayana will face her compatriot Worknesh Degefa, who is not only the defending champion but the fastest woman in the field having clocked 1:06:14 in 2016.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Indeed, the top three women from 2016 return with Ababel Yeshaneh and Helah Kiprop also coming back to Delhi to challenge for the title again.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Bringing two global champions from London to this race shows our commitment to having the very best runners in the world compete at the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon,&rdquo; said Vivek Singh, joint managing director of race promoters Procam International.</p>
<p>&ldquo;This IAAF Gold Label event is deservedly one of the world's most prestigious half marathon and with the appearance of Geoffrey and Almaz this year, it adds further lustre to its reputation. It is renowned among the world&rsquo;s top distance runners for its fast course and comprehensive field,&rdquo; he added.</p>
<p>As the only IAAF Gold Label Road Race in India, the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon can rightly claim to be the nation&rsquo;s top distance running event.</p>
<p>All the leading runners will also have in their sights first prize cheques of US$27,000 with a total prize money purse (combined men and women) of US$275,000.</p>
<p><strong>Phil Minshull (Organisers) for the IAAF</strong></p>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div><strong>Elite fields for the 2017 Airtel Delhi Half Marathon (with personal bests):</strong></div>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div><strong>MEN -</strong></div>
<div>Geoffrey Kirui (KEN) 59:38</div>
<div>Jorum Okumbo (KEN)&nbsp; 58:48</div>
<div>Alex Korio (KEN)&nbsp; 58:51</div>
<div>Stephen Kibet (KEN)&nbsp; 58:54</div>
<div>Yigrem Demelash (ETH)&nbsp; 59:19</div>
<div>Berhanu Legese (ETH)&nbsp; 59:20</div>
<div>Ismail Juma (TAN)&nbsp; 59:30</div>
<div>Moses Kurong (UGA)&nbsp; 59:50</div>
<div>Mohamed Ziani (MAR)&nbsp; 1:00:28</div>
<div>Emmanuel Gniki (TAN)&nbsp; 1:00:47</div>
<div>Leonard Korir (USA)&nbsp; 1:01:06</div>
<div>Abadi Hadis (ETH)&nbsp; debut</div>
<div>John Langat (KEN)&nbsp; debut</div>
<div>Andamlak Belihu (ETH) debut</div>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div><strong>WOMEN -</strong></div>
<div>Almaz Ayana (ETH) debut</div>
<div>Worknesh Degefa (ETH) 1:06:14</div>
<div>Netsanet Gudeta (ETH) 1:07:31</div>
<div>Helah Kiprop (KEN) 1:07:39</div>
<div>Ababel Yeshaneh (ETH) 1:07:52</div>
<div>Mimi Belete (BRN) 1:09:15</div>
<div>Karolina Nadolska (POL) 1:09:54</div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>

World champions Geoffrey Kirui and Almaz Ayana will headline the fields at the 13th Airtel Delhi Half Marathon, an IAAF Gold Label Road Race, on 19 November.

World champions Kirui and Ayana set for Delhi Half Marathon

<p>Organisers of the Golden Gala Pietro Mennea have announced that 36 medallists from last year&rsquo;s Olympic Games will compete at the <strong>IAAF Diamond League</strong> meeting in Rome on 8 June.</p>
<p>The all-star cast includes the full set of medallists from four events in Rio as well as three world record-holders.</p>
<p>Two of those world record-holders, Genzebe Dibaba and Almaz Ayana, will line up against one another in the 5000m. Last year Ayana won the 5000m in the Italian capital with 14:12.59, the second-fastest time in history.</p>
<p>The men&rsquo;s javelin field includes five winners of global titles: Olympic champion Thomas Rohler, world champion Julius Yego, 2012 Olympic champion Keshorn Walcott, 2013 world champion Vitezslav Vesely and 2007 world champion Tero Pitkamaki.</p>
<p>The women&rsquo;s 1500m looks set to be a three-way battle between Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon, world indoor champion Sifan Hassan and double European indoor champion Laura Muir.</p>
<p>In the 100m, world 200m champion Dafne Schippers will take on world U20 champion Candace Hill, while world record-holder Aries Merritt faces world champion Sergey Shubenkov in the 110m hurdles.</p>
<p>The women&rsquo;s high jump field is worthy of a World Championships final as it contains the likes of Olympic champion Ruth Beitia, world champion Maria Lasitskene (nee Kuchina), two-time world champion Blanka Vlasic, 2012 world indoor champion Chaunte Lowe, European indoor champion Airine Palsyte and 2015 European indoor silver medallist Alessia Trost.</p>
<p>The men&rsquo;s 200m pits Olympic silver medallist Andre De Grasse against Olympic bronze medallist Christophe Lemaitre and world U20 100m silver medallist Filippo Tortu, while USA&rsquo;s Justin Gatlin will contest the 100m.</p>
<p>More top names will be announced in the weeks leading up to the meeting on 8 June.</p>
<p><strong>Organisers for the IAAF</strong></p>
<p><strong>2017 IAAF Diamond League calendar:<br /></strong>5 May &ndash; Doha, QAT<br />13 May &ndash; Shanghai, CHN<br />27 May &ndash; Eugene, USA<br />8 Jun &ndash; Rome, ITA<br />15 Jun &ndash; Oslo, NOR<br />18 Jun &ndash; Stockholm, SWE<br />1 Jul &ndash; Paris, FRA<br />6 Jul &ndash; Lausanne, SUI<br />9 Jul &ndash; London, GBR<br />16 Jul &ndash; Rabat, MAR<br />21 Jul &ndash; Monaco, MON<br />20 Aug &ndash; Birmingham, GBR<br />24 Aug &ndash; Zurich, SUI<br />1 Sep &ndash; Brussels, BEL</p>

Organisers of the Golden Gala Pietro Mennea have announced that 36 medallists from last year’s Olympic Games will compete at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Rome on 8 June.

Multitude of global medallists set to compete in Rome – IAAF Diamond League

<p>The fourth episode of the current season of <em>IAAF Inside Athletics</em> is available to <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91mVabNLJ3g" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">watch online now</a></strong></span> and&nbsp;features an exclusive interview with world 10,000m record-holder Almaz Ayana.</p>
<p>Last year the Ethiopian distance runner broke the long-standing world record in the 10,000m on her way to winning the Olympic title in her event. She went on to take the bronze medal in Rio over 5000m, the event at which she is also the world champion.</p>
<p><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/91mVabNLJ3g?rel=0&amp;showinfo=0" width="500" height="280" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen">&amp;lt;br class="k-br" </iframe></p>
<p><em>IAAF Inside Athletics</em> is hosted by Trinidad and Tobago&rsquo;s 1997 world 200m champion Ato Boldon. To watch episodes of <em>IAAF Inside Athletics</em> as soon as they are released, follow the <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthleticsClub" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">IAAF World Athletics Club Facebook page</a></strong></span>.</p>
<p><strong>IAAF</strong></p>

The fourth episode of the current season of IAAF Inside Athletics is available to watch online now and features an exclusive interview with world 10,000m record-holder Almaz Ayana.

IAAF Inside Athletics – Almaz Ayana

<p>In the eighth part of our 2016 end-of-year reviews, statisticians A Lennart Julin and Mirko Jalava look back on the best long-distance performances of the year.</p>
<h3>Men&rsquo;s 5000m</h3>
<p>In men&rsquo;s distance races, it&rsquo;s not about who comes to major championships with the fastest results, but more about whether anyone can beat Mo Farah. This time, however, the Briton did have the best result heading into the major championships, having run a world-leading 12:59.29 in London in July.</p>
<p>In terms of quality at the top end, the 2016 season was relatively thin in this event. Only four runners ran faster than 13 minutes during the season and Farah&rsquo;s London result stayed as the world-leading time until the end of the year. Ethiopia&rsquo;s Muktar Edris and Dejen Gebremeskel had the next fastest times and while they made it to the final in Rio, they didn&rsquo;t win a medal. Edris played a part in the final sprint, but was disqualified.</p>
<p>All three Kenyan representatives in this event at the Olympic Games went out in the heats, but there were two Kenyan-born athletes running for other countries. As usual, Farah had few problems in winning the race. It wasn&rsquo;t a slow race, but the athlete who finished closest to him was a shock.</p>
<p>USA&rsquo;s Paul Chelimo, running in his first major outdoor championships, took the silver medal in a big PB of 13:03.90 behind Farah&rsquo;s 13:03.30. Chelimo arrived in Rio with a PB of 13:21.61, which he first bettered in the heats with 13:19.54. Hagos Gebrhiwet took the bronze medal for Ethiopia in 13:04.35, replicating his finish from the IAAF World Championships Beijing 2015.</p>
<h3>Men&rsquo;s 10,000m</h3>
<p>The 10,000m is a similar story to the 5000m; fast PBs do not matter if you can&rsquo;t beat Mo Farah in the final sprint.</p>
<p>The 33-year-old Briton competed once over this distance before Rio, posting a 26:53.71 win at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Eugene in May. It lasted one month as the world-leading mark before Yigrem Demelash won the Ethiopian Olympic Trial race in Hengelo in 26:51.11 at the end of June.</p>
<p>At the Olympics it was clear long before the final lap that it would come down to another sprint finish. Kenya&rsquo;s Paul Tanui was the only runner able to keep Farah on his toes until the final metres. Tanui, who had taken the bronze medal at the 2013 and 2015 IAAF World Championships, won the Kenyan Olympic Trials before Rio and clocked a season&rsquo;s best of 27:05.64 for the silver medal behind Farah&rsquo;s winning time of 27:05.17.</p>
<p>World leader Demelash fought hard for the bronze with fellow Ethiopian Tamirat Tola. The latter bagged the medal in 27:06.26, just 0.01 ahead of Demelash. USA&rsquo;s Galen Rupp, who finished second in 2012, was dropped off the medal chase during the last lap and finished fifth in 27:08.92.</p>
<h3>Men&rsquo;s 3000m steeplechase</h3>
<p>Conseslus Kipruto was in his own class in the steeplechase during the 2016 season. The 22-year-old, who earned successive silver medals at the 2013 and 2015 IAAF World Championships, won four straight IAAF Diamond League meetings from the start of the season, running world-leading marks each time.</p>
<p>The Kenyan started with an 8:05.13 victory in Doha, followed that with 8:02.77 in Rabat, 8:01.41 in Rome and an 8:00.12 personal best in Birmingham. He suffered his only loss of the season at the Olympic Trials in Eldoret in July, where 2008 Olympic champion Brimin Kipruto triumphed.</p>
<p>In Rio, though, Kipruto won in style in 8:03.28 with USA&rsquo;s Evan Jager taking the silver medal in 8:04.01 in just his fifth season as a steeplechaser.</p>
<p>Following the disqualification of two-time Olympic champion Ezekiel Kemboi for a lane violation, Mahiedine Mekhissi of France took bronze in 8:11.52, his third consecutive Olympic medal and his fifth straight medal at a global championship. The 31-year-old also won his fourth European title in the summer in Amsterdam.</p>
<p>The biggest surprise in the Olympic final was 20-year-old Moroccan Soufiane Elbakkali, who finished fourth in a PB of 8:14.35 at his first major championships.</p>
<h3>Women&rsquo;s 5000m</h3>
<p>The hunt for the first sub-14:10 has been going on ever since Tirunesh Dibaba ran her 14:11.15 in Oslo in 2008. Last year Genzebe Dibaba and Almaz Ayana took turns, but in 2016 the record assault involved only world champion Ayana as Dibaba focused on the 1500m.</p>
<p>Ayana first went to work at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Rabat in May. After finding herself in the lead after just 1500 metres, she ended up winning in 14:16.31, the fifth-fastest 5000m performance in history at that time.</p>
<p>At the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Rome 11 days later, Ayana attacked the record again. Despite running solo from 2000 metres onwards, she ended up with 14:12.59, the second-fastest time ever. Ayana&rsquo;s winning margins in those races were 13 and 21 seconds respectively.</p>
<p>She closed out her IAAF Diamond League season in early September with another comfortable win, a 14:18.89 clocking in Brussels for the eighth-fastest performance of all time. But while there is little doubt that Ayana was the leading 5000m runner in 2016, she finished third at the Olympics.</p>
<p>In the Olympic 5000m final, Ayana &ndash; with confidence boosted by her 10,000m world record a week before &ndash; burst away from the rest of the field on the fifth lap and gradually built a lead of five seconds. But it proved to be too much too early.</p>
<p>While Ayana maintained decent 70-second laps, Vivian Cheruiyot was flying with laps of 65 and 66 seconds. Ayana&rsquo;s substantial lead rapidly melted away and she went from having a five-second lead with three laps remaining to a 7.4-second deficit when Cheruiyot crossed the finish line. The Kenyan had covered her final 1000 metres in a mind-blowing 2:43.1.</p>
<h3>Women&rsquo;s 10,000m</h3>
<p>Wang Junxia&rsquo;s 10,000m world record of 29:31.78 had remained unchallenged for more than two decades. With splits of 15:05/14:26, Wang&rsquo;s performance was far from a perfect race, but with the only top-level 10,000m races coming at major championships &ndash; where athletes run for places, not times &ndash; only four other women in history had managed to run faster than 30 minutes for 10,000m before this year.</p>
<p>In Rio, four women broke that barrier. And the winner, Almaz Ayana, shattered Wang&rsquo;s record.</p>
<p>Compared to previous major championships, the biggest difference in Rio was that someone pushed the pace from the outset. Alice Aprot drew on her cross-country strength and tried to take the finishing sting out of her opponents, passing half way in 14:47.</p>
<p>Ayana, Vivian Cheruiyot and Tirunesh Dibaba were still in close contact. Ayana then took the lead and increased the pace with a 2:49 kilometre.</p>
<p>No one was able to stay with her and she crossed the finish line in 29:17.45 after covering the second half in 14:30. Cheruiyot finished 15 seconds in arrears, but missed Wang&rsquo;s old world record by just one second.</p>
<p>In what proved to be the greatest 10,000m race in history, the top 13 finishers set PBs and the world all-time list got a thorough revision with Ayana, Cheruiyot, Dibaba and Aprot moving to first, third, fourth and fifth respectively.</p>
<h3>Women&rsquo;s 3000m steeplechase</h3>
<p>When a 17-year-old Ruth Jebet ran 9:20.55 for fourth place at the 2014 IAAF Diamond League final, missing the world U20 record by a mere 0.18 seconds, her potential was obvious. Nevertheless, few people at the start of 2016 would have predicted that Jebet would become the fastest woman of all time at the distance.</p>
<p>She showed early promise in her first race of the year, breaking her own Asian record with 9:15.98 for second place behind world champion Hyvin Kiyeng at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Shanghai. That proved to be her last loss of 2016.</p>
<p>Two weeks later she held off Kiyeng by 0.04 at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Eugene to become just the second woman in history to run faster than nine minutes. She then added a 14-second win in Stockholm.</p>
<p>Jebet was so full of running in Rio that she won her heat by six seconds in 9:12.62. In the final she couldn&rsquo;t hold back more than a couple of laps; after a 3:06 opening kilometre, Jebet added a 2:54 to blow away all opponents before finishing in 2:59 to set a PB of 8:59.75, missing the world record by less than a second.</p>
<p>In the battle for the other medals, Kiyeng had to dig deep to take silver ahead of Emma Coburn, who lowered the US record by three seconds to 9:07.63, moving to eighth on the world all-time list.</p>
<p>Just 12 days after the Olympic final, Jebet went for the world record at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Paris. Showing few signs of tiredness, Jebet didn&rsquo;t just break the world record, she demolished it by six seconds to win in 8:52.78.</p>
<p>The top quartet of steeplechasers &ndash; Jebet, Kiyeng, Coburn and Beatrice Chepkoech &ndash; finished in that precise order in the four fastest races of the year: Eugene in May, Rio and Paris in August and the IAAF Diamond League final in September.</p>
<p><strong>Mirko Jalava (men&rsquo;s events) and A Lennart Julin (women&rsquo;s events) for the IAAF</strong></p>

In the eighth part of our 2016 end-of-year reviews, statisticians A Lennart Julin and Mirko Jalava look back on the best long-distance performances of the year.

2016 end-of-year reviews – long distance

<p>Almaz Ayana produced one of the outstanding moments of the year when setting a world 10,000m record en route to striking Olympic gold in Rio. She was later honoured for her achievements when named the 2016 Female Athlete of the Year. Here the Ethiopian ponders our first impressions questions.</p>
<h3>First coach</h3>
<p>It was teacher Lemma&nbsp;Haffa. He pushed me to work hard and offered plenty of advice during my early days involved in the sport.</p>
<h3>First race</h3>
<p>It was a school race back in 2007. The memories I have of that race is that a competitor pulled me from behind and I fell to the ground. I didn&rsquo;t win the race, so I don't have good memories of it!</p>
<h3>First media interview &nbsp;</h3>
<p>It came in 2013 with Ethiopian television. I learned many lessons from this about how to give an interview. I&nbsp;didn't&nbsp;see the interview, but I read about it on social media. I talked about my performance and my training, which is about hard work and commitment.</p>
<h3>First international competition</h3>
<p>I competed in a 3000m steeplechase race in Bambous, Mauritius in 2009. I fell down in the middle of the race, so I don&rsquo;t have a good memory of that race. I finished second but If I had not have fallen, I would have won the race. Mauritius was very nice. A beautiful place for recreation and tourism.</p>
<h3>First sport</h3>
<p>Athletics is my first sport. I did not do any other sports before athletics.</p>
<h3>First international medal&nbsp;</h3>
<p>That was the bronze medal I won over 5000m at the 2013 IAAF World Championships in Moscow. I have good memorIes of this race, because I did not expect to win a medal. I was so happy to climb the podium.</p>
<h3>First major athletics disappointment&nbsp;</h3>
<p>This came at the 2011 All-Africa Games in Mozambique. I was supposed to run the 3000m steeplechase but I could not due to an unexpected pain in my leg. The injury or pain quickly cleared but, unfortunately, I missed out on competing in Mozambique. This was my first athletics injury and also I am glad to say my last.</p>
<h3>First sporting idol</h3>
<p>It was Tirunesh Dibaba (Ethiopian distance running star). She won a number of medals at her early age with remarkable performances and always has a smile on her face in every race. A favorite race of mine was watching Tirunesh win the 10,000m gold at the London 2012 Olympic Games.</p>
<h3>First thing learned to cook</h3>
<p>Per my culture, I started to prepare coffee and injera (a sourdough risen flatbread) at an early age, I was aged about nine or 10. My mother was the one who taught me to cook. Today I can cook some very good Ethiopian dishes.</p>
<h3>First car</h3>
<p>My first car was a Toyota Corolla, which I bought in 2013. I drove the car for two years.&nbsp;It was a reliable car.</p>
<h3>First pet</h3>
<p>My family had a dog named Buchi. The memory I have for Buchi is that it was a very reliable guard dog to our home in the countryside. It didn't like any guests arriving at our home unless the guest was with a family member.</p>
<p><strong>Steve Landells for the IAAF</strong></p>

Almaz Ayana produced one of the outstanding moments of the year when setting a world 10,000m record en route to striking Olympic gold in Rio. She was later honoured for her achievements when named the 2016 Female Athlete of the Year. Here the Ethiopian ponders our first impressions questions.

First impressions – Almaz Ayana

<p>While their names have long been familiar to athletics fans, the roads that Usain Bolt and Almaz Ayana paved and travelled on the way to their 2016 World Athlete of the Year awards provided yet another inspiring example on how to reach the pinnacle of the sport, adding even more superlatives to their already extraordinary athletic resumes.</p>
<p>Bolt, for nearly a decade one of the sporting world's most recognisable stars, received the award for a record sixth time after overcoming a mid-season injury scare to win a third successive Olympic triple, while Ayana, who redefined the limits of endurance when taking the Olympic 10,000m title, won her first.</p>
<h3>Bolt &ndash; Legendary status confirmed</h3>
<p>Bolt, now 30, has grown accustomed to the heightened expectations that shadow his every appearance. That's perhaps why he wasn't sounding any alarm bells after his season's opener, a modest 10.05 100m victory at the Cayman Invitational on 14 May.</p>
<p>"I'm just glad I got out of that one injury-free," Bolt said. "In a season-opener, you never know what to expect. I expected to be rusty. Once I get a few more races under my belt, by (Olympic) trials time I'll be ready."</p>
<p>He chiseled a few hundredths of a second from that performance six days later with a 9.98 win in Ostrava, his eighth victory at the meeting, but crossed the line shaking his head and later expressing disappointment with his start.</p>
<p>"We have a lot of work to do, but we&rsquo;ve got a couple of months to do it, so we&rsquo;ll be fine,&rdquo; he said. "It&rsquo;s a very big year for me. This will be the year that I&rsquo;ll really top off my legendary status."</p>
<p>A three-week training break followed before his next appearance, again over 100m, at home in Kingston. There too he struggled with his start, but was still markedly faster, clocking 9.88.&nbsp;</p>
<p>"It wasn&rsquo;t a perfect race but the key thing is that I actually won and that&rsquo;s a good thing and I came out injury-free," Bolt said.</p>
<p>With Rio still more than two months away, things appeared to be on track until a grade one hamstring tear sustained in the 100m semi-finals of the national championships, again in Kingston, threatened to derail his Olympic quest. The Jamaican federation gave him the better part of a month to prove his fitness to still be named to the Rio-bound squad.</p>
<p>That test come at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in London on 22 July where he contested his first 200m of the season. He won in 19.89 to secure his Olympic berths, but his race raised as many questions about his form as it answered.</p>
<p>&ldquo;I'm getting there, I'm not fully in shape and I need more work,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But over time I'll be fine. I'll just keep doing the work. The key thing is I came out here and won, but I'm always hungry for more."</p>
<p>When he finally arrived in Rio, Bolt commanded centre stage. Indeed, of all the story lines emanating from the Games, none captured the imagination more than the Jamaican's quest for a third triple gold medal performance. As he's done so often in similar high pressure situations, Bolt dutifully fulfilled his task.</p>
<p>In the 100m he was as graceful as he was dominant, recovering from a sluggish start to win seemingly unchallenged in 9.81, 0.08 ahead of the runner-up.</p>
<p>"Somebody said I can become immortal," he said after his victory. "Two more medals to go and I can sign off. Immortal."</p>
<p>He was even more dominant in the 200m, long his favorite event, winning in 19.78, a massive 0.24 seconds ahead of Canadian Andre De Grasse.</p>
<p>Bolt capped his Rio stay by anchoring teammates Asafa Powell, Yohan Blake and Nickel Ashmeade in the 4x100m relay to his ninth Olympic gold medal in 37.27, thus cementing his legendary status in what he had already confirmed will be his final Olympic appearance.</p>
<p>Both of his season's bests came in the Rio 2016 finals, capping a campaign in which he was undefeated in 13 races, including heats.</p>
<h3>Ayana &ndash; entering uncharted territory</h3>
<p>While Bolt&rsquo;s heroics seemed almost inevitable, those of Ayana, still a rising star in the distance ranks, were not.</p>
<p>After landing within three seconds of the 5000m world record last year and striking gold in the event at the World Championships, the conventional wisdom was that Ayana might finally eclipse compatriot Tirunesh Dibaba's eight-year-old 14:11.15 world record. She did eventually shatter a world record, but not over the distance everyone expected.</p>
<p>Ayana showed strong form early, opening her season with a dominant 3000m victory at the IAAF Diamond League series opener in Doha, winning in 8:23.11 after a 65-second final lap.</p>
<p>&ldquo;It was a very good race for me,&rdquo; said Ayana, who won by more than three seconds and came up just 0.47 shy of the national record she set last year. &ldquo;My mind is already on Rio."&nbsp;</p>
<p>She also seemed preoccupied with fast times.</p>
<p>Sixteen days later, she dominated her first 5000m outing of the season, coming within five seconds of the world record with a 14:16.31 performance in Rabat, at the time the fifth fastest ever. Ten days later she came even closer at Rome's Olympic Stadium where she clocked 14:12.59, the second fastest of all time and just 1.44 seconds shy of Dibaba's record.</p>
<p>But it was her next outing, at the Ethiopian 10,000m Olympic Trials race in Hengelo, that caught many off guard, and which signalled her true Rio Olympic intentions.</p>
<p>Running in her debut over the distance, Ayana dominated the contest and cruised to a 30:07.00 victory, the eighth fastest performance of all time and the fastest debut in history. Among those she beat was Tirunesh Dibaba, the two-time Olympic champion in the event, who suffered her first career defeat over the distance. Suddenly, Ayana was the woman to beat in two events in Rio.</p>
<p>In Rio, Ayana managed to deliver the best possible kick-off to the athletics competition. In the 10,000m final which was held during the morning session of the opening day, she broke away from the pack just after half way and forged on to shatter the world record, clocking 29:17.45.</p>
<p>"I never thought that this would happen," said Ayana, whose stunning performance eclipsed the 29:31.78 record set by China's Wang Junxia in 1993, less than two years after Ayana was born. It was one of the oldest women's records on the books.</p>
<p>"I'm so in awe."</p>
<p>She again controlled much of the proceedings in the 5000m final one week later, but perhaps tiring from her titanic effort in the longer race, faded over the final lap and took the bronze. It was her only defeat in seven races this year.</p>
<p>She concluded her season in much the same way as she opened it: with a 5000m world record assault, this time in Brussels. She came up short, but her 14:18.89 performance was the eighth fastest ever.</p>
<p><strong>Bob Ramsak for the IAAF</strong></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h3>2016 competitions of the World Athletes of the Year:</h3>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Usain Bolt</strong></p>
<div>100m:</div>
<div>10.05 1 George Town 14 May</div>
<div>9.98 1 Ostrava 20 May</div>
<div>9.88 1 Kingston 11 Jun</div>
<div>10.15 1 (heats) Kingston (NC) 30 Jun</div>
<div>10.04 1 (semis) Kingston (NC) 1 Jul</div>
<div>10.07 1 (heats) Olympic Games 13 Aug</div>
<div>9.86 1 (semis) Olympic Games 14 Aug</div>
<div>9.81 1 Olympic Games 14 Aug</div>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div>200m:</div>
<div>19.89 1 London 22 Jul</div>
<div>20.28 1 (heats) Olympic Games 16 Aug</div>
<div>19.78 1 (semis) Olympic Games 17 Aug</div>
<div>19.78 1 Olympic Games 18 Aug</div>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div>4x100m:</div>
<div>37.27 1 Olympic Games 19 Aug</div>
<div>&nbsp;(Jamaica: Asafa Powell, Yohan Blake, Nickel Ashmeade, Usain Bolt)</div>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Almaz Ayana</strong></p>
<div>3000m:<br />8:23.11 1 Doha 6 May</div>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div>5000m:</div>
<div>14:16.31 1 Rabat 22 May</div>
<div>14:12.59 1 Roma 2 Jun</div>
<div>15:04.35 1 (heats) Olympic Games 16 Aug</div>
<div>14:33.59 3 Olympic Games 19 Aug</div>
<div>14:18.89 1 VD Brussels 9 Sep</div>
<div>&nbsp;</div>
<div>10,000m:</div>
<div>30:07.00 1 Hengelo (Olympic Trials) 29 Jun</div>
<div>29:17.45 WR 1 Olympic Games 12 Aug</div>

While their names have long been familiar to athletics fans, the roads that Usain Bolt and Almaz Ayana paved and travelled on the way to their 2016 World Athlete of the Year awards provided yet another inspiring example on how to reach the pinnacle of the sport, adding even more superlatives to their already extraordinary athletic resumes.