Ethiopian Salemon Barega, a silver medalist at the recent World Athletic Championships, is among the five athletes shortlisted for the 2019 Male Rising Star Award.
The 19-year-old, who holds the world U20 record for the 5,000m set last year, is the fastest U20 runner over the distance this year with a time of 12:53.04s. He is also the fastest in the 10,000m this year in 26:49.46.
Apart from the 5,000m silver in Doha, Barega also finished fifth in the senior race at the World Cross Country.
Brazilian Alison dos Santos is another young talent, who has had a spectacular season in the 400m hurdles. The South American senior champion, finished only seventh in Doha, but has swept aside his opposition in the continental events.
He had also won the Pan American senior title as well as the Universiade crown. He had broken the U20 400m hurdles record seven times this season.
Lamecha Girma is the second Ethiopian to be shortlisted for the award this year.
Like Barega, Girma also clinched a silver at the World Athletic Championships in Doha, the 3,000m steeplechase.
He holds the season’s best time of 8:01.36 in the event set in Doha in one of the closest finishes in the event at the world championships. Girma’s time was also the Ethiopian national senior record.
European indoor 3,000m champion Jakob Ingebrigsten has also been nominated for his versatility in the middle and long distance events.
He holds the world U20 leading time as well as the European U20 record at 1500m with 3:30.16.
He also holds the European U20 record at the mile with 3:51.30 as well as the world U20 leading time in the event.
The Norwegian also holds the European U20 record at 5000m with 13:02.03.
He had finished fourth at 1500m at the World Athletics Championships and fifth in the 5000m race.
Ukranian Mykhaylo Kokhan is the only field event athlete to be nominated. He had finished fifth in Doha but is the current world U20 lead in the hammer with 77.39m.
In the U20 category, using the junior equipment, Kokhan setthe European U20 record of 84.73m in Sweden earlier this year.
The winner of the 2019 Male Rising Star Award to recognise this year’s best U20 athlete would be announced during the World Athletics Awards 2019 in Monaco on Saturday 23 November.
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