2017 World Athlete of the Year longlist nominees - throws (© Getty Images)
With just three days to go before voting for the 2017 World Athletes of the Year concludes, here’s another look at this year's men’s and women’s longlist candidates, focusing today on those who excelled in the throws and combined events.
Pawel Fajdek (POL) successfully defended his world hammer title, becoming the first man in history to win three world titles in the discipline. He won 15 of his 16 competitions, including the World University Games and European Team Championships, and threw beyond 80 metres in 11 of those competitions. He also won the IAAF World Hammer Throw Challenge with a record score, having thrown a world-leading 83.44m in Ostrava.
Sandra Perkovic (CRO) dominated the discus once again in 2017. She won the world title in London with 70.31m, the longest throw at a global championships since 1991, and was crowned IAAF Diamond League champion. She threw a lifetime best of 71.41m, the best throw in the world since 1992, and produced the 10 farthest throws of the year.
Nafissatou Thiam (BEL) started 2017 by winning the European indoor pentathlon title with a world-leading 4870. 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. She ended her season by winning the world title in London.
Johannes Vetter (GER) was considered the No.2 javelin thrower in his country at the start of the season, but he soon overtook Olympic champion Thomas Rohler as not only the best thrower in Germany, but also in the world. In an incredible competition in Luzern, Vetter set PBs in each of the first four rounds – all of them beyond 90 metres – topping out with an almighty 94.44m to climb to second on the world all-time list. He went on to prove that performance wasn't a one-off by winning the world title in London.
Anita Wlodarczyk (POL) produced the most dominant 2017 campaign of any athlete in the world. She remained undefeated for the entire season for the third year in succession, winning the world title and the IAAF Hammer Throw Challenge. She had nine competitions and 31 throws beyond 77 metres, a mark no other woman in the world managed in 2017. Her world-leading throw of 82.87m is the second-best throw in history, just 11 centimetres shy of her own world record.
Voting procedure for 2017 World Athletes of the Year
A three-way voting process will determine the finalists.
The IAAF Council and the IAAF Family will cast their votes by email, while fans can vote online via the IAAF's social media platforms. Individual graphics for each nominee have been posted on Facebook and Twitter; a 'like' on Facebook or a retweet on Twitter will count as one vote.
The IAAF Council’s vote will count for 50% of the result, while the IAAF Family’s votes and the public votes will each count for 25% of the final result.
Voting closes on 16 October. At the conclusion of the voting process, three men and three women finalists will be announced by the IAAF.
The male and female World Athletes of the Year will be announced live on stage at the IAAF Athletics Awards 2017 in Monaco on Friday 24 November.
IAAF
