World Athletics Gala Logo (© c)
MonteCarlo Following the survey of the IAAF Family and the votes of the Internet fans, the IAAF has selected the three male and three female finalists who are still in the running to become the 2007 World Athlete of the Year.
Finalists are: (in alphabetical order)
Men
Tyson Gay USA
Haile Gebrselassie ETH
Liu Xiang CHN
Women
Meseret Defar ETH
Carolina Klüft SWE
Blanka Vlasic CRO
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24-year-old Liu Xiang is the current World champion for the men’s 110m Hurdles. In 2007 he has come 4 hundredths of a second close to his own World record. Born in Shanghai, the Chinese is also the reigning Olympic champion.
Liu Xiang’s credentials
o Has won his first World Championships gold medal
o Has won 7 out of his 9 outdoor races
o Has run the fastest time of the year
o Has dipped under 13 seconds twice in 2007
o Has set a new Asian Indoor record
23-year-old Blanka Vlasic is the current World champion for the women’s High Jump. She has improved her personal best by four centimetres to 2.07m this year. Born in Split, the Croatian is also a former double World Junior champion and World Indoor medallist.
Blanka Vlasic’s credentials
o Has remained undefeated in 16 competitions since 24 June 2007
o Has set four National records since 11 May 2007
o Has set the six best marks of the year
o Has jumped 17 times 2.00m or higher during the outdoor season
o Has become the third highest outdoor jumper of all-time
o Has won the IAAF World Championships in Osaka
o Has won five out of six IAAF Golden League Meetings
The winners of the 2007 World Athlete of the Year Awards will be announced live, on stage, during the 2007 World Athletics Gala, which will take place in Monaco, on 25 November 2007.
