2018 World Athlete of the Year nominees - sprints and hurdles (© Getty Images)
With just eight days to go before voting for the 2018 World Athletes of the Year concludes, here’s a closer look at this year's men’s and women’s nominees in the sprints and hurdles.
Dina Asher Smith
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Dina Asher-Smith started her year by taking the bronze medal in a highly competitive 200m final at the Commonwealth Games. Two days later, she picked up a gold medal in the 4x100m relay. During the peak of the season, the British sprinter earned three gold medals with world-leading times at the European Championships in Berlin, running 10.85 in the 100m, 21.89 in the 200m and 41.88 in the 4x100m.
The 22-year-old ended her 2018 campaign with runner-up finishes in the 100m at the IAAF Diamond League final and the IAAF Continental Cup Ostrava 2018.
Christian Coleman
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Christian Coleman was off to a flying start – quite literally – in 2018 as he produced the fastest 60m performance ever recorded in what was his first competition of the year. His 6.37 clocking could not be ratified, but one month later Coleman went even faster with a 6.34 victory at the US Indoor Championships, securing an official world indoor record. He capped his indoor campaign by taking the world indoor title in Birmingham.
Injuries hampered Coleman’s outdoor season but he still managed to notch up victories at three IAAF Diamond League meetings, including the final in Brussels where he ran a world-leading PB of 9.79.
Noah Lyles
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Noah Lyles was a model of consistency in the 200m in 2018. After a 19.83 victory at the opening IAAF Diamond League meeting of the season in Doha, the US sprinter went on to win in Eugene (19.69), Lausanne (19.69) and Monaco (19.65) before winning the final in Zurich in 19.67.
The 21-year-old also showed impressive form over 100m, winning the US title in 9.88 and taking victory at the IAAF Continental Cup Ostrava 2018.
Shaunae Miller-Uibo
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Shaunae Miller-Uibo tasted nothing but success in 2018, winning all of her competitions across a range of events. The Bahamian sprinter raced just three times at her specialist distance, the 400m, and produced a world-leading national record of 48.97 to win at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Monaco.
The 200m was her main focus of the year, however, and after winning the Commonwealth title in April, she was victorious in Shanghai, Kingston, Rabat and Birmingham before winning the IAAF Diamond League final in Brussels and the IAAF Continental Cup Ostrava 2018.
Abderrahman Samba
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Abderrahman Samba of Qatar produced one of the greatest ever seasons by a 400m hurdler. All nine of his performances in finals were inside 48 seconds, while his fastest time – an Asian record of 46.98, achieved in Paris – made him just the second man in history to better 47 seconds.
The 23-year-old won gold medals in the 400m hurdles and 4x400m at the Asian Games and capped his season with victory at the IAAF Continental Cup Ostrava 2018.
Voting procedure
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 will be posted on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram this week; a 'like' on Facebook and Instagram 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 for the Male World Athlete of the Year closes on 13 November. At the conclusion of the voting process, five men and five 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 2018.
IAAF
