Bolt and Dibaba favorites for IAAF award

Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt and Ethiopian distance runner Tirunesh Dibaba lead the contenders for the IAAF’s world athlete of the year awards.

Bolt won three gold medals with world records in the 100 and 200 meters and 4x100 relay at the Beijing Games, while Dibaba broke the 5,000-meter world record by over five minutes in June and swept the women’s 5,000 and 10,000 in Beijing.

Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele, who completed the men’s 5,000-10,000 double in Beijing, and Cuba’s Dayron Robles, who broke the 110-meter hurdles record in June and took the gold in Beijing, are the other men’s finalists announced Monday.

The other women’s contenders are Kenyan teenager Pamela Jelimo, who won the women’s 800 meters in Beijing and collected the $1 million jackpot by winning her event at all six Golden League meetings, and Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva, who set the 24th world record of her career to win the Olympic gold with a vault of 5.05 meters.

The winners will be announced at an IAAF gala on Nov. 23.

MONTE CARLO, Monday, AP