2004 MEN’S ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
KENENISA BEKELE

Ethiopian distance star Kenenisa Bekele has been named the 2004 Men’s World Athlete Of The Year by Track & Field News. The setter of new World Records in both the 5000 and 10,000 during the Olympic year, the 22-year-old Bekele went onto win Athens gold in the 10,000 and silver in the 5000. He received 26 of 39 first-place votes in racking up a convincing win over three-time No. 1 Hicham El Guerrouj.

The 17 men who received votes (No. 1s in parentheses):

1. Kenenisa Bekele (Ethiopia--distances) 360 (26)
2. Hicham El Guerrouj (Morocco--mile) 303 (9)
3. Stefan Holm (Sweden--high jump) 248 (3)
4. Christian Olsson (Sweden--triple jump) 229
5. Xiang Liu (China--110 hurdles) 226 (1)
6. Saïf Saaeed Shaheen (Qatar--steeplechase) 205
7. Roman Sebrle (Czech Republic--decathlon) 174
8. Felix Sánchez (Dominican Republic--400 hurdles) 87
9. Dwight Phillips (US--long jump) 65
(Phillips becomes U.S. AOY)
10. Virgilijus Alekna (Lithuania--discus) 48
11. Jeremy Wariner (US--400) 47
12. Shawn Crawford (US--100/200) 35
13. Koji Murofushi (Japan--hammer) 33
14. Justin Gatlin (US--100/200) 30
15. Tim Mack (US--pole vault) 27
16. Asafa Powell (Jamaica--100/200) 16
17. Robert Korzeniowski (Poland--walks) 12

’04 WOMEN’S ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
YELENA ISINBAYEVA

Record-smashing pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva, who raised the World Record no fewer than 7 times during the Olympic campaign, has been named 2004 Women’s World Athlete Of The Year by Track & Field News. The 22-year-old Russian scored a runaway win over Olympic doubler Kelly Holmes, claiming 26 of 36 first-place votes.

The 16 women who received votes (No. 1s in parentheses):

1. Yelena Isinbayeva (Russia--pole vault) 347 (26)
2. Kelly Holmes (Great Britain--800/1500) 288 (8)
3. Yelena Slesarenko (Russia--high jump) 228
4. Carolina Klüft (Sweden--heptathlon) 224 (2)
5. Tonique Williams-Darling (Bahamas--400) 188
6. Osleidys Menéndez (Cuba--javelin) 186
7. Tatyana Lebedeva (Russia--long jump/triple jump) 182
8. Veronica Campbell (Jamaica--100/200) 118
9. Joanna Hayes (US--100 hurdles) 113
(Hayes becomes U.S. AOY)
10. Yipsi Moreno (Cuba--hammer) 32
11. Meseret Defar (Ethiopia--distances) 28
12. Françoise Mbango (Cameroon--triple jump) 24
13. Gulnara Samitova (Russia--steeplechase) 13
14. Elvan Abeylegesse (Turkey--distances) 5;
15. tie, Svetlana Feofanova (Russia--pole vault) & Paula Radcliffe (Great Britain--distances) 2