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World Athletics

Noah Lyles, Faith Kipyegon Named World Athletics Track Athletes Of The Year

Noah Lyles, Faith Kipyegon Named World Athletics Track Athletes Of The Year

Noah Lyles of the U.S. and Faith Kipyegon of Kenya were named World Athletics male and female Track Athletes of the Year as four world record holders feted.

Dec 11, 2023 by Joe Battaglia
Noah Lyles, Faith Kipyegon Named World Athletics Track Athletes Of The Year

Noah Lyles of the U.S. and Faith Kipyegon of Kenya were named the male and female Track Athletes of the Year as World Athletics handed out its end of the year honors tonight in Monaco.

Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya. fresh off breaking the marathon world record at the Chicago Marathon, Mondo Duplantis of Sweden, the Louisiana bred pole vault sensation, and Tigisty Assefa of Ethiopia, who broke the women’s marathon world record in Berlin, joined Kipyegon as world record setters who took home awards.

World Athletes of the Year for 2023

Women’s track: Faith Kipyegon, KEN, 1500m/mile/5000m
Women’s field: Yulimar Rojas, VEN, triple jump
Women’s out of stadia: Tigist Assefa, ETH, marathon
Women’s Rising Star: Faith Cherotich, KEN, steeplechase
Men’s track: Noah Lyles, USA, 100m/200m
Men’s field: Mondo Duplantis, SWE, pole vault
Men’s out of stadia: Kelvin Kiptum, KEN, marathon
Men’s Rising Star: Emmanuel Wanyonyi, KEN, 800m

All six World Athletes of the Year secured world titles or major marathon wins.

“The depth of talent and the outstanding performances in our sport this year more than justify the expansion of the World Athletics Awards to recognize the accomplishments by these six athletes across a range of disciplines,” World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said in a press release. 

“Our World Athletes of the Year alone have achieved seven world records between them in 2023, as well as a host of world titles and major wins, so it is only fitting that they be recognized as the athletes of the year in their respective fields.

“I congratulate our award winners and all of the athletes nominated for these honors.”

Kipyegon, 29, set world records at an incredible three distances during a season in which she also won two golds at Worlds. In Florence, she improved the world record by a full second in the 1500m to 3:49.11. A week later in Paris, she lowered the 5000m world record by almost a second and a half to 14:05.20. Her third world record came in Monaco, where she clocked 4:07.64 in the mile, taking five seconds off the previous mark.

Assefa, 27, won the Berlin Marathon in September in 2:11:53, smashing the world record by two minutes and 14 seconds and achieving the biggest single improvement on the mark in nearly four decades. 

A month later, the 24-year-old Kiptum became the first man to break 2:01 in the marathon, when he crossed the finish in 2:00:35, taking 34 seconds off Eliud Kipchoge’s world mark and simultaneously sparking future plans for the first record-eligible sub-2 marathon.

Duplantis, 24, improved his world pole vault record both indoors and outdoors in 2023, while he also retained the world title and achieved 20 clearances of 6.00m or higher. He took gold at the World Championships in Budapest with a 6.23m clearance on his first attempt.

For Lyles, his honor on the track culminates a year in which he established himself as the preeminent sprinter on the planet. At the World Championships, the 26-year-old won the 100m in a world-leading 9.83, the 200m in 19.52, and anchored the U.S. 4x100m relay to victory in 37.38.

Rojas, 28, continued her dominance of the women’s triple jump winning her fourth world title in Budapest and her third consecutive Diamond League Trophy.

Kenyans swept the Rising Star awards as World U20 gold medalists Faith Cherotich and Emmanuel Wanyonyi stepped up to the senior circuit and found continued success. Cherotich, 23, won bronze in the 3000m steeplechase and Wanyonyi took silver in the men’s 800m at the World Championships.