Men’s World Athlete of the Year is Tebogo

At the World Athletics meeting in Monaco on Sunday, Letsile Tebogo (a sprinter from Botswana) and Sifan Hassan (a Dutch marathon runner who won gold at the Olympics in Paris) were named “Athletes of the Year.”

The out-of-stadium prize was also given to Hassan for her great effort in the French capital, which included both the marathon and the track.

After running a heat, she won two bronze medals in the 10,000-meter and 5,000-meter events over the course of seven days. In the marathon, she beat Kenyan Tigist Assefa, who held the world record, by just three seconds, which was an amazing win.

Hassan said, “I never thought I was going to win this one,” when she got her award in Monaco. “Yesteryear was crazy.” Not just me, but all of the players have been great.

To become the first African to win an Olympic title, Tebogo won the 200-meter race at the Stade de France in 19.46 seconds, beating out American Kenny Bednarek and the bookies’ favorite, Noah Lyles.

Tebogo said, “This means a lot.” He also informed them that he won the men’s race title.

„There are a lot of fans out there who really want us to win something big for the continent; it’s not just about the close team.

“I didn’t expect to hear my name, so it was a big surprise.”

The International Athletics Federation also gave awards to a number of other athletes who did superbly at the Olympics.

After going perfect in 2024, Armand Duplantis, a Swedish pole vaulter, won the men’s field event, setting a new world record of 6.26 meters and taking home the gold medal.

Ukrainian Yaroslava Mahuchikh won the women’s event after winning Olympic gold in Paris and breaking the world record for high jump at the age of 22.

Along with Tebogo, the out-of-stadium award went to Tamirat Tola of Ethiopia, who won the men’s Olympic marathon. Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, who broke her own world record in the 400-meter hurdles and won gold in Paris with a time of 50.37, was recognized in the track category.

Award winners for the World Athletics Championships

Women’s World Athlete of the Year: Sifan Hassan (NED)

Men’s World Athlete of the Year: Letsile Tebogo (BOT)

Women’s track: Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (USA)

Women’s field: Yaroslava Mahuchikh (UKR)

Women’s out-of-stadium: Sifan Hassan (NED)

Men’s track: Letsile Tebogo (BOT)

Men’s field: Armand Duplantis (SWE)

Men’s out-of-stadium: Tamirat Tola (ETH)

Women’s Rising Star: Sembo Almayew (ETH)

Men’s Rising Star: Mattia Furlani (ITA)