Voting has opened and and fans of athletics are invited to choose who they think should be the 2008 World Athletes of the Year. After Jamaica’s domination of this year’s track and field season especially at the Olympic Games in China three Jamaicans were nominated to be voted on for the award. They are Usain Bolt for the men and Veronica Campbell and Melaine Walker for the women.
With the help of your votes, which will be added to a poll of IAAF Athletics Family members, a shortlist of 3 finalists will be presented to a Special Jury of the International Athletic Foundation, who will then make a final selection of the World Athlete of the Year and announce the winners, live on stage, at the 2008 IAAF World Athletics Gala in Monaco on the 23rd of November.
Asafa Powell won this award in 2006 for his world record breaking season.
Full Nominee List
Men
Kenenisa Bekele (ETH)
Usain Bolt (JAM)
Bryan Clay (USA)
LaShawn Merritt (USA)
Haile Gebrselassie (ETH)
Dayron Robles (CUB)
Irving Saladino (PAN)
Andrey Silnov (RUS)
Andreas Thorkildsen (NOR)
Samuel Wanjiru (KEN)
Women
Veronica Campbell-Brown (JAM)
Tirunesh Dibaba (ETH)
Gulnara Galkina-Samitova (RUS)
Yelena Isinbayeva (RUS)
Pamela Jelimo (KEN)
Françoise Mbango (CMR)
Barbora Spotakova (CZE)
Valerie Vili (NZL)
Blanka Vlasic (CRO)
Melaine Walker (JAM)
