Alison Dos Santos

The 10 nominees were announced on Thursday. The athletes were selected by an international panel of athletics experts, comprising representatives from all six continental areas of World Athletics.

It has been another memorable year for the sport and the nominations reflect some of the standout performances achieved at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22, World Athletics Indoor Championships Belgrade 22, one-day meeting circuits and other events around the world.

The nominees for 2022 Men’s World Athlete of the Year are (in alphabetical order):

Kristjan Ceh, SLO

- World discus champion

- Diamond League discus champion, throwing a national record 71.27m on the circuit in Birmingham

- European discus silver medallist

Alison dos Santos, BRA

- World 400m hurdles champion

- Diamond League 400m hurdles champion

- Ran a world-leading South American record of 46.29

 Mondo Duplantis, SWE

- World pole vault champion indoors and outdoors

- Diamond League and European pole vault champion

- Improved his world record to 6.19m and 6.20m indoors, and then 6.21m outdoors

 Soufiane El Bakkali, MAR

- World 3000m steeplechase champion

- Diamond League 3000m steeplechase champion

- Unbeaten in 2022, running a world-leading 7:58.28 in Rabat

Grant Holloway, USA

- World 110m hurdles champion

- World indoor 60m hurdles champion

- Diamond League 110m hurdles champion

 Jakob Ingebrigtsen, NOR

- World 5000m champion, world 1500m silver medallist indoors and outdoors

- European 1500m and 5000m champion

- Diamond League 1500m champion in a world-leading 3:29.02

Eliud Kipchoge, KEN

- Improved his world marathon record to 2:01:09

- Berlin Marathon champion

- Tokyo Marathon champion

Noah Lyles, USA

- World 200m champion

- Diamond League 200m champion

- Ran a world-leading national record of 19.31 to move to third on the world all-time list

 Anderson Peters, GRN

- World javelin champion

- Commonwealth javelin silver medallist

- Threw a world-leading NACAC record of 93.07m, moving to fifth on the world all-time list

 Pedro Pichardo, POR

- World triple jump champion with a world-leading leap of 17.95m

- World indoor triple jump silver medallist

- European triple jump champion

 A three-way voting process will determine the finalists.

 The World Athletics Council and the World Athletics Family will cast their votes by email, while fans can vote online via the World Athletics social media platforms. Individual graphics for each nominee will be posted on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube this week; a 'like' on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube or a retweet on Twitter will count as one vote.

 The World Athletics Council’s vote will count for 50% of the result, while the World Athletics Family’s votes and the public votes will each count for 25% of the final result.

 Voting for the World Athletes of the Year closes at midnight on Monday 31 October. At the conclusion of the voting process, five women and five men finalists will be announced by World Athletics.

 The winners will be revealed on World Athletics’ social media platforms in early December.

Peters, the reigning world champion, broke his own national record on his opening throw of 88.96m but lost the lead when Jakub Vadlejch hurled the javelin out to a new world lead of 89.87m in the fourth round.

Spurred by the challenge, Peters uncorked his first ever 90m throw in the penultimate round, hitting a new personal best of 90.19m only to see Vadlejch surpass him once more with a personal best of 90.88m.

Undaunted the Grenadian, who once wanted to be a sprinter, flung his best-ever throw, 93.07m to put victory beyond Vadlejch’s reach. It was a new national record and personal best for Peters, and the fifth-best throw in history.

Meanwhile, Ricketts, the 2019 World Championships silver medalist produced a winning mark of 14.82m in challenging conditions caused by blustery winds as high as 6.5m/s that aided her winning jump.

Ukraine’s Maryna Bekh-Romanchuck took second place with her best effort of 14.73, her fourth jump of the competition that was helped by a gale force wind of 6.3m/s.

Dominica’s Theo LaFond took the final podium spot with her fourth-round jump of 14.43m assisted by a 3.6m/s wind.

Miller-Uibo last lost a 400m on this track back in 2019 when Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Nasser stunned the world with a 48.14 run at the World Championships. This time it was the Dominican Republic’s Marileidy Paulino, the Tokyo Olympics silver medallist who stormed home in a season-best 51.20.

Stephenie-Ann McPherson trailed the imperious but clearly winded Bahamian up until the last few metres before overtaking her to clock a season-best 51.69. Miller-Uibo trudged across the line in 51.84 for third.

Barbados’ record holder Sada Williams (52.09) and Tokyo Olympic finalist Candice McLeod (52.37) finished fourth and fifth, respectively.

Shericka Jackson, who won the 100m at the National Stadium in Kingston last weekend, lost her first race of the outdoor season clocking 22.07 in the 200m after getting caught late by the USA’s Gabby Thomas, who ran a season-best 21.98 that equalled the meet record set by Allyson Felix back in 2015.

Dina Asher-Smith, the reigning world champion, clocked a smart 22.37 in her 200m opener, which was good enough for third place.

There was a blanket finish in the 100m hurdles that Kendra Harrison won in 12.43 but can count herself lucky to win. Brittany Anderson led off the last hurdle but appeared to stumble and faded to third in 12.44, the same time awarded to Nigeria Tobi Amusan who was awarded second place.

Bahamas’ Devyne Charlton was some distance back running 12.61 for fourth place while Megan Tapper hit the first hurdle and finished eighth in 12.92.

The 400m hurdles offered a glimpse of what to expect in the event this year as Alison Dos Santos, the Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist out-paced silver medallist Rai Benjamin down the home stretch to win in a world-leading 47.24, which was also a new meet record.

Benjamin was timed in 47.49.

The rest of the field was far behind but Thomas Barr of Ireland was the next best running 49.67 for third while Kyron McMaster finished fourth in 49.93.

Jaheel Hyde was fifth in 50.23.

Last Thursday, McMaster secured a significant victory in Slovakia, winning the 400m hurdles in a season's best time of 47.26 seconds. At the P-T-S Meeting, the British Virgin Islands star raced to victory ahead of David Kendziera the USA, who clocked in at 48.95 seconds with Dany Brandt of Switzerland taking third place with a season-best time of 49.25 seconds.

McMaster, a two-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist, joined Evans’ group at the end of last season after spending the previous five years with Jamaican coach Lennox Graham, who is also the Assistant Coach at Clemson University.

Under Graham’s guidance, McMaster won two Commonwealth Games titles and was fourth at the Toyko Olympics in a lifetime best 47.08, a time that would have won the gold medal at every other Olympic Games except for 1992 when Kevin Young won in a then world record of 46.78 and in Tokyo where Karsten Warholm dropped a jaw-dropping 45.94 to win gold.

Two years on, Coach Evans believes the 26-year-old McMaster is now primed to achieve a new lifetime best and a place on the podium of a global championship.

Prior to McMaster’s season-best run in Slovakia, the BVI-born hurdler has been running 48s all season so his performance in Slovakia was somewhat surprising. Regarding McMaster's readiness and recent improvement, Coach Evans stated, "I do believe that he probably should have run 47 a little earlier. But the thing is sometimes when you get a kid from a new coach he has to get used to the program and then you do things a little differently."

In Evans’ training group McMaster trains with the likes of Steven Gardiner, an Olympic and World Champion, Matthew Hudson-Smith, a World Championship bronze medallist as well as Michael Cherry, a 400m standout. Working with them has helped McMaster get settled and improve. He just now needs to focus on the task at hand.

"Kyron studies hard, studies very, very hard and I told him, sometimes you're doing too much studying. You're trying to do my job, the agent's job. I just need you to run," the veteran coach said.

Speaking about the training plan to get McMaster to this stage before the World Championships, Coach Evans explained, "We worked on what we had to work on the track and when we step out on the track, just run... know that I got to run 400 metres but I got 10 sticks. That's one of the 10 items that's going to interrupt me and that's how we look at it now."

In Budapest, McMaster will face Warholm, American champion Rai Benjamin and the world champion, Alison dos Santos, all of whom have run 46 seconds for the 400m hurdles. For McMaster to get onto the podium, he has to be capable to dipping below 47 seconds.

Evans believes he is ready to do just that.

“[I] already told him to get ready to get a new tattoo (of his new personal best). I have a few goals when I'm coaching; two goals, we are going to win a medal and when we step on that track at the end of the season, we going to know we ran our PB."

Regarding McMaster's competitors, Coach Evans noted, "You got the big three; you got Santos back, you got Warholm, and you got Rai Benjamin, somebody's going to choke, somebody's going to make a mistake.

“Somebody's going to take a step back. One of them hurdlers is going to step back and do a 47. You got to be ready to say, ‘Okay, I need to make sure I step forward. It's like I told Matthew Hudson Smith last year when Stevie (Gardiner) stepped out the picture. Matthew Hudson, this is your time to go get your medal.”

Coach Evans further expressed his confidence in McMaster's potential to succeed, saying, "I think we got a good game plan that we're going come up with when we get there. Kyron, it's your time to step in the picture... You got to stay in front of them... Your foot on the gas. You got to be on the gas now."

McMaster races next at the Eddie Murphy Classic in Memphis, Tennessee on August 4. It will be his final race before departing for his medal hunt in Budapest.

“My objective is for him to run in Memphis where it'll be a great. It'll be a great field. You know CJ Allen that ran 47.8 and two other guys. A lot of people are going to use that Memphis race. For our people, that's their last race and then they're going across [to Budapest],” Evans concluded.

McMaster a two-time Commonwealth Games champion, was always favoured to right the wrongs on this occasion, and that he did in, making no mistakes at the National Athletic Stadium in the Central European country.

He clocked 47.34s, behind Norway’s stalwart Karsten Warholm (46.89s), who added the World Championships crown to his Olympic title, while American Rai Benjamin (47.56s) was third.

Jamaica’s 19-year-old Roshawn Clarke (48.07s) ran an impressive race to finish fourth behind the proverbial big guns. In fact, he finished ahead of now dethroned champion Alison Dos Santos (48.10s) of Brazil.

Running from lanes five and eight respectively, the 26-year-old McMaster and Clarke went out well, keeping pace with Dos Santos for the first 200m.

However, when Warholm and Benjamin made their move, Clarke had no response to their injection, while McMaster was seemingly fading into bronze, but produced a late rally to get by the American in the closing stages to win the battle for second.

You can catch live action of the 2023 World Athletic Championships by downloading the Sportsmax App.

McMaster, who has endured a topsy-turvy season, placed fifth in a season’s best 47.79s, while Clarke, who was up with the front runners at one point, lost his form, clipped obstacles in the closing stages, and failed to finish.

Still, there was some Caribbean connection on the podium, as American gold medal winner Rai Benjamin is the son of former West Indies stalwart Winston Benjamin. The younger Benjamin, who represented Antigua and Barbuda at the youth level, won in a season’s best 46.46s.

He upstaged Norwegian World Record holder Karsten Warholm (47.06s), while Brazil’s Alison dos Santos (47.26s) closed fast to claim bronze.

Jackson got her season off to a winning start with a 200m victory in Marrakech in 22.82 to maintain a winning streak of 16 finals that dates back to June 2022.

Having won Diamond Trophies in both the 100m and 200m last year, she’ll look to build on that opener in Oslo, where she will face USA’s Jenna Prandini, Anavia Battle and Brittany Brown, plus Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith and Daryll Neita, who won the 200m in Suzhou and 100m in Doha.

Dominican Republic’s world champion Marileidy Paulino will race against world bronze medallist Sada Williams and world indoor silver medallist Lieke Klaver in the 400m, while the men’s event features Grenada’s multiple Olympic and world medallist Kirani James, world silver medallist Matthew Hudson-Smith and home favourite Havard Bentdal Ingvaldsen.

Jamaica’s world bronze medallist Rushell Clayton leads the entries for the women’s 400m hurdles.

The men’s event will a treat for the fans as the three-time world champion Karsten Warholm contests the 400m hurdles for the first time since finishing second in the Diamond League final in Eugene in September.

He’s got some fierce competition as he faces Brazil’s Alison dos Santos, the world and Diamond League champion in 2022, who opened his own 400m hurdles season with a 46.86 win in Doha. Looking to challenge them both will be world silver medallist Kyron McMaster.

After setting a world record of 74.35m in Ramona in April, Mykolas Alekna won the discus clash in Marrakech, surpassing 70 metres again with a 70.70m throw to beat Australian record-holder Matthew Denny and Sweden’s Olympic and world champion Daniel Stahl.

That trio clash again in Oslo as part of a stacked field – one which also includes 2022 world gold medallist Kristjan Ceh, Andrius Gudzius, Fedrick Dacres and Lukas Weisshaidinger.

Jackson, who won silver in the 100m in a personal best 10.73 on Sunday, looked magnificent in semi-final 1, cruising to 21.67 to win and advance to the final.

100m bronze medallist and double Olympic champion Elaine Thompson-Herah finished third in semi-final 2 in a season’s best 21.97 to advance to the final as a fastest loser. The USA’s Tamara Clark ran 21.95 to win while defending world champion Dina Asher-Smith ran a season’s best 21.96 for second.

Newly-crowned 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce was also impressive in semi-final 3, running a season’s best 21.82 to win ahead of US champion Abby Steiner (22.15).

Dominican Republic Mixed Relay gold-medallist Alexander Ogando continued his brilliant world championships so far with a personal best and national record 19.91 to win semi-final 1 of the men’s 200m.

Trinidadian 2017 World Championship bronze medallist Jereem Richards of Trinidad & Tobago finished third in semi-final 2 in a brilliant 19.86 to advance to the final as a fastest loser. American defending champion Noah Lyles ran a brilliant 19.62 to win the race while Olympic silver medallist Kenny Bednarek, also of the USA, ran a season’s best 19.84 for second.

In the women’s 400m hurdles, Jamaican champion Janieve Russell ran 54.42 to win heat 2 and advance to the semi-finals.

Panama’s Gianna Woodruff ran 55.21 to finish third in semi-final 3 and progress. Jamaica’s Shiann Salmon produced 54.01 in heat 4 to finish second and advance while her teammate, 2019 World Championship bronze medallist Rushell Clayton finished fourth in heat 5 in 54.99 to advance.

Jaheel Hyde ran a new personal best 48.03 for sixth in the men’s 400m hurdles final. Brazilian world leader Alison Dos Santos dominated to win gold in a championship record 46.29 while Americans Rai Benjamin (46.89) and Trevor Bassitt (47.39) were second and third.

BVI’s McMaster, who finished fourth at the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo, will have an opportunity to win his first Olympic medal after running 48.15 to win the second semifinal ahead of Estonia’s Rasmus Magi (48.16), now a finalist for the third successive Olympics.

Qatar’s Abderrahman Samba also made it through to the final out of that semi with 48.20 in third.

Jamaica’s Malik James-King looked set to finish in the top two in that semifinal before clipping the last hurdle and stumbling to seventh in 48.85.

Clarke ran comfortably on his way to 48.34 for second in the third semifinal behind American Rai Benjamin who won in 47.85.

Reigning Olympic champion and world record holder Karsten Warholm (47.67), France’s Clement Ducos (47.85) and 2023 World champion Alison Dos Santos (47.95) qualified from the first semifinal.

Jaheel Hyde ran 50.03 to finish seventh in that first semifinal.

The final is set for Friday at 2:45pm Jamaica Time (3:45pm ECT).

James-King, who posted a personal best of 47.42 to win the Jamaican national championships in June, delivered a smooth performance in the heats. He clocked 48.21 to comfortably win the last of five heats, securing his place as an automatic qualifier.

Clarke, who finished second to James-King at the Jamaican trial won Heat Four in a time of 48.17, ensuring his advancement to the semi-finals.

Hyde, competing in the opening heat against gold medal favorite Rai Benjamin, crossed the finish line in second place with a time of 49.08. Benjamin took the heat in an effortless 48.82. McMaster followed closely, securing third place in 49.24 to move on to the next round.

Among the other medal favorites, Norway’s Karsten Warholm emerged as the fastest qualifier for the semi-finals, winning Heat Two in an impressive 47.57. Frenchman Clement Docus achieved a lifetime best of 47.69 to take second place, while Abderrahman Samba of Qatar finished third in 48.85.

In another heat, Estonia’s Rasmus Magi led the pack with a winning time of 48.62, followed by the USA’s CJ Allen, who clocked 48.64. Brazil’s Alison dos Santos, another strong contender for a medal, secured his semi-final spot with a time of 48.85.

 Reflecting on her race, Alfred shared, "I was specially prepared today not to make a mistake and to just focus on myself and my own race. I felt great during the race but now my legs hurt a bit because I did a heavy training. Of course, I cannot complain right now, as I am taking home the Diamond League win. I am getting better with each race, I run more relaxed as well. I feel confident. I know that all I need to do is to trust my coach and to trust myself. The coach knows what is best for me. I really love this Monaco crowd and the introduction of the event with the lights. I will get back to practice and just focus for my preparations for Paris."

 Alfred's victory is a clear indication of her growing form and confidence as she heads towards the Olympic Games. Her ability to perform under pressure and continue improving with each race makes her a strong contender for the podium in Paris.

 Cuba's Leyanis Perez Hernandez emerged victorious in the women's triple jump with a leap of 14.96m. She edged out Dominica's Thea LaFond, who jumped 14.87m, and Ukraine's Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk, who recorded 14.81m. Notably, Jamaican athletes Shanieka Ricketts and Ackelia Smith finished fourth and fifth with jumps of 14.67m and 14.30m, respectively.

 Botswana's Letsile Tebogo dominated the men's 200m, winning in 19.87 seconds. Alexander Ogando of the Dominican Republic finished second in 20.02 seconds, while Uganda's Gracious Tarsis Orogot took third in 20.32 seconds. Matthew Hudson placed fourth with a time of 20.43 seconds.

 In an epic showdown in the men's 400m hurdles, USA's Rai Benjamin triumphed over Olympic champion Karsten Warholm, clocking a blazing 46.67 seconds. Warholm finished a close second in 46.73 seconds, with Brazil's Alison dos Santos taking third in 47.18 seconds. Jamaica's Malik James-King also impressed, running a fast 47.73 seconds despite hitting hurdles nine and 10, which slowed his momentum.

 USA's Quincy Hall delivered a world-leading and lifetime best performance in the men's 400m, winning in a commanding 43.80 seconds. Fellow American Vernon Norwood finished second with a season's best 44.34 seconds, while South Africa's Lythe Pillay took third in 44.58 seconds.

 Rhasidat Adeleke of Ireland was a dominant winner in the women's 400m, clocking 49.17 seconds. Lieke Klaver of the Netherlands finished second with a lifetime best of 49.64 seconds, and Kendall Ellis of the USA took third in 50.39 seconds.

 The Monaco Diamond League meeting showcased some of the world's best athletic talents, setting the stage for an exciting build-up to the Olympic Games in Paris. With performances like Julien Alfred's and others, the anticipation for the upcoming Olympics continues to grow.

McMaster, the two-time Commonwealth Games champion, won the second of the five heats in 48.47 ahead of Estonia’s Rasmus Magi (48.58) and the USA’s Trevor Bassit, who clocked in at 48.74. Kenya’s Wiseman Were Mukhobe was the final automatic qualifier from the heat when he finished fourth in 49.10.

Clarke, 19, who equaled the World U20 record of 47.85 at Jamaican national championships in July, was the fastest of the Caribbean men to advance, clocking 48.39 while finishing third in Heat 4 of the preliminary round.

The heat was won by Germany’s Joshua Abuaku in 48.47 ahead of Estonia’s Rasmus Magi (48.58) and the USA’s Trevor Bassit, who clocked in at 48.74. Nigeria’s Ezekiel Nathaniel was fourth in a personal best of 48.47.

Hyde finished second in his heat, the last of the five, in 48.63. Rai Benjamin of the USA won the heat in 48.35 with Japan’s Kazuki Kurokawa third in 48.71, a season’s best. Costa Rica’s Gerald Drummond was the other automatic qualifier in 48.73.

Also through were medal favourites Karsten Warholm, the Olympic champion and world record holder and Brazil’s Alison Dos Santos, who clocked 48.76 and 48.12, respectively.

Parchment’s time was second fastest in qualifying behind American defending World Champion Grant Holloway’s 13.14.

Also advancing to the semi-finals were Jamaicans Rasheed Broadbell (13.36) and Orlando Bennett (13.55) as well as Barbados’ Shane Brathwaite (13.47).

The Men’s 400m hurdles saw four Caribbean athletes progress to the semi-finals.

Jamaica’s Kemar Mowatt ran 49.44 to finish second in his heat behind Olympic bronze medallist and 2022 world leader Alison Dos Santos of Brazil (49.41).

Mowatt’s Jamaican teammate Jaheel Hyde finished third in his heat in 50.03 behind Norewgian Olympic Champion and world record holder Karsten Warholm (49.34) and Belgium’s Julien Watrin (49.83).

Jamaica's Shawn Rowe finished sixth in heat four but his time of 49.51 was good enough to see him advance.

Kyron McMaster of the British Virgin Islands also advanced safely after a 49.98 effort for fourth in his heat behind the USA’s Khalifah Rosser (48.62), Ramsey Angela of the Netherlands (49.62) and Sweden’s Carl Bengstrom (49.64). American Olympic silver medallist Rai Benjamin ran 49.06 to in his heat and also safely advance.

In the field, Shanieka Ricketts, Kimberley Williams and Ackelia Smith all advanced to the final of the Women’s triple jump.

Ricketts jumped 14.45m to advance with the fifth furthest jump in qualifying while Smith was eighth furthest with a personal best 14.36m. Williams was the 12^th furthest jumper in qualifying with 14.27m.

Ana Lucia Jose Tima of the Dominican Republic had the third farthest jump in qualifying with a new national record 14.52m while Dominica’s Thea Lafond (14.39m) and Cuba’s Leyanis Perez Hernandez (14.30m) will also be in Monday’s final. Venezuelan world record holder Yulimar Rojas led all qualifiers with 14.73m.

Jamaicans Lamara Distin and Kimberly Williamson both jumped 1.90m to advance to the final of the Women’s high jump.

The 27-year-old Norwegian said before his race that his experience at last year’s World Championships in Oregon, where he finished seventh after recovering from a hamstring injury incurred in his opening meeting of the season, has been a strong motivating factor this year.

"It was really nice to do this again – that 0.01 off the Diamond League record and also the track record," Warholm said after a performance that also bettered his own top world mark for 2023.

"This is a nice timing as the World Championships is just around the corner. Since I was injured last year, I enjoyed the racing more."

In his wake was Brazilian Alison dos Santos, who took over the world title he had won in 2017 and 2019, who clocked a season’s best of 47.66.

Dos Santos, who finished third in the Tokyo Olympic final, has had to recover from a serious injury early this year in the form of a torn meniscus in his right knee which required surgery.

At the time it appeared his season was over before it had started, but he returned to top class action at the Silesia Diamond League meeting on 16 July, where he finished third in the 400m in 44.73. And in his first race over the hurdles in Monaco the 23-year-old from Sao Paulo did enough to stir his World Championships ambitions.

"That was the perfect opportunity for me to come back to run,” he said. "Now I will get ready for Budapest, to be able to win my world title again."

But Warholm and Dos Santos are not the only ones with world gold in their sights, as Rai Benjamin is equally determined to make a breakthrough in Budapest.

The 26-year-old US athlete took silver behind Warholm at the Doha 2019 World Championships and bettered the Norwegian’s world record of 46.70 in the Tokyo Olympic final where he clocked 46.17 and took another silver as Warholm reached deeper to set the current world record of 45.94.

Last year, with Warholm still a way off full fitness following a hamstring strain after clearing the first hurdle of his first race of 2022 at the Rabat Diamond League meeting, Benjamin must have thought his chance had come to make a golden impression on his home track in Eugene, Oregon – but Dos Santos won with a South American record of 46.29, with the home runner clocking 46.89.

How close can the Brazilian get to his best form in the time available? At the moment his is only fifth fastest in this season’s list, with two other runners above him – Kyron McMaster of the British Virgin Islands, the double Commonwealth champion and fourth-place finisher in Tokyo, who has clocked 47.26, and CJ Allen of the United States, who has set a personal best of 47.58.

Others likely to make their mark include France’s Ludvy Vaillant, who has run a personal best of 47.85 this season, as has Jamaica’s Roshawn Clarke, and 31-year-old Rasmus Magi of Estonia, European silver medallist in 2014, who has run 48.04 this season.

Italy’s 24-year-old 2018 world U20 champion Alessandro Sibilio, a Tokyo Olympic Games finalist, is also one to look out for.