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Diamond League rewards most consistent athletes with $20,000

Karsten Warholm, Elaine Thompson-Herah and Faith Kipyegon were named the most consistent athletes of the Diamond League season

Photo by: Photo: Pat Holleran/Shannon Digital Imaging
December 30, 2021
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The Diamond League is awarding a new $20,000 prize to the athletes who delivered world-class performances on a regular basis this season.

Kenya’s Faith Kipyegon winning the women’s mile at the 2019 Prefontaine Classic

The winners of the consistency awards were announced today via Twitter, male and female winners respectively in the sprints, hurdles, distance events. The winners were determined by average performance score during competition, in comparison to other athletes in their respective disciplines.

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Hurdles (100mH to 400mH)

Femke Bol (Netherlands) – Bol won the first four 400m hurdles races she competed in, setting a Diamond League record of 52.37 in Stockholm. She had another win at the Diamond League stop in Lausanne before setting the meet record and crowned the Diamond League champion in Zurich.

Karsten Warholm (Norway) – The 400m hurdles world record holder won his first Olympic gold medal in stunning fashion this summer, but he made history a few weeks earlier in Norway. Warholm ran a world record time of 46.70 at Oslo’s Bislett Games to make him the seventh athlete ever to set a world record at a Diamond League meet. He also chalked up 400mH wins in Monaco and Zurich to hold his reign as the Diamond League champion.

Sprints (100m to 400m)

Kenny Bednarek (U.S.) – Going into the 2021 season, Bednarek never won or competed at a Diamond League meet. Over the summer, he managed to earn four victories and a Diamond League title. He became the first 200m sprinter to run under 20 seconds more than 10 times in a single season – talk about consistency.

Elaine Thompson-Herah wins the 100m at the Pre Classic. Photo: Pat Holleran/Shannon Digital Imaging

Elaine Thompson-Herah (Jamaica) – It was a year to remember for Thompson-Herah, as she regained the Diamond League 100m title for the first time in four years. She clocked the second-fastest 100m time ever at the Pre Classic, which was one of three meeting records she set this season.

Karsten Warholm and Elaine Thompson-Herah named World Athletics Athletes of the Year

Distance (800m to 5,000m)

Faith Kipyegon (Kenya) – The Kenyan 1,500m star topped off her season with a victory at the Diamond League final in Zurich, winning the Diamond Trophy for the first time since the birth of her child in 2018. She was the most consistent distance performer of the season, taking meet wins in Doha, Eugene and Monaco.

Timothy Cheruiyot in the Bowerman Mile at the Pre Classic. Photo: Pat Holleran/Shannon Digital Imaging

Timothy Cheruiyot (Kenya) – Cheruiyot dominated the Diamond League scene, picking up four wins, including a personal best time of 3:28.28 in Monaco, winning his fourth successive Diamond League title.

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