IAAF World Athlete of the Year 2017 finalists announced

Britain’s Mo Farah in a past race. PHOTO/IAAF
By SPORT CORRESPONDENT
newsdesk@reporter.co.ke
With just 18 days to go until the IAAF Athletics Awards 2017, the IAAF has revealed the names of the finalists for the 2017 IAAF World Athlete of the Year awards.
No Kenyan athlete is in the shortlist. Noteable stars include Britain’s Mo Farah, Qatar’s Mutaz Barshim and Ethiopia’s Almaz Ayana.

IMAGE/IAAF
The finalists are (in alphabetical order):
Men –
Mutaz Essa Barshim (QAT)
Mo Farah (GBR)
Wayde van Niekerk (RSA)
Women –
Almaz Ayana (ETH)
Ekaterini Stefanidi (GRE)
Nafissatou Thiam (BEL)
Voting procedure for 2017 World Athletes of the Year
A three-way voting process determined the finalists.
The IAAF Council and the IAAF Family cast their votes by email, while fans voted online via the IAAF’s social media platforms. The IAAF Council’s vote counted for 50% of the result, while the IAAF Family’s votes and the public votes each counted for 25% of the final result. Voting closed on 16 October.
The male and female World Athletes of the Year will be announced live on stage at the IAAF Athletics Awards 2017 in Monaco on Friday 24 November.