World Athletics Athlete of the Year finalists announced

World Athletics, formerly the IAAF, has announced the short lists for Male and Female World Athlete of the Year. Here are the short lists and Canadian Running’s predictions on who will win in each category.

Five finalists announced for Male World Athlete of the Year 2019?@joshuacheptege1??@samkendricks ??@EliudKipchoge ??@LylesNoah ??@kwarholm ??#AthleticsAwards

?:https://t.co/FzUAeiofEw pic.twitter.com/lBbpCw2AII

— World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) November 11, 2019

Male Athlete of the Year

Eliud Kipchoge, of Kenya, who who stunned the world with his 1:59:40 marathon at the INEOS 1:59 Challenge in Vienna. Kipchoge also won this year’s London Marathon for the fourth time, in a course-record-setting 2:02:37. He was voted Male Athlete of the Year for 2018.

Joshua Cheptegei of Uganda, who won the World Cross-Country Championships in Denmark in the spring, as well as the 10,000m title in Doha in a world-leading 26:48.36.

RELATED: IAAF announces male and female World Athlete of the Year nominations

Noah Lyles of the US, who won the world 200m and 4 x 100m titles in Doha, and both 100m and 200m Diamond League titles, becoming the first man in history to do so in the same season.

Karsten Warholm of Norway, who won the 2019 world championships, Diamond League and European Indoor Championships titles in the 400m hurdles.

Pole vaulter Sam Kendricks of the US is also on the short list.

Canadian Running predicts: Duh. Kipchoge.

Five finalists announced for Female World Athlete of the Year 2019?@realshellyannfp ??@SifanHassan ??@brigidkosgei ??@DalilahMuhammad ??
Yulimar Rojas ??#AthleticsAwards

?:https://t.co/qOjTgtEuhX pic.twitter.com/avpccHvxoG

— World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) November 12, 2019

Female Athlete of the Year

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica, winner of both the 100m (in a world-leading 10.71) and 4 x 100m (in a world-leading 41.44) titles at Doha.

Dalilah Muhammad of the US, who broke the world record in the 400m hurdles in 52.20 at the US Championships, then broke her own record at Doha in 52.16. Muhammad also won the 4×400 relay title.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B3-LVY3hlK6/

Brigid Kosgei of Kenya, who took more than a minute off Paula Radcliffe’s marathon world record of 2:15:25 at the 2019 Chicago Marathon, running 2:14:04. Kosgei also won this year’s London Marathon and set a world-leading half-marathon time of 1:05:28 at the Great North Run.

RELATED: Why Kosgei deserves the same kudos as Kipchoge (or more)

Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands, winner of both the 10,000m and 1,500m races in Doha in world-leading times of 30:17.62 and 3:51.95, after earlier breaking the mile world record in 4:12.33. Hassan is the first person (man or woman) to successfully complete the 10,000m/1,500m double at the Olympic or World Championships. She also won the 1,500m and 5,000m Diamond League titles.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B2GJQajHTqV/

Jumper Yulimar Rojas of Venezuela is also on the short list.

Canadian Running predicts: We would have said Hassan, who has been so incredibly dominant on the track this year, but with the controversy surrounding her former coach Alberto Salazar, we’re going to go with Kosgei.

The awards will be presented 11 days from now, at the World Athletics Awards 2019 on November 23 in Monaco. Public voting has now closed. A number of other awards will be handed out, including the Male and Female Rising Star Award. The nominees for those awards are:

Male Rising Star Award nominees

Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway, who is the European indoor 3,000m champion and scored the world-leading time and holds the European record in the U20 1,500m with a 3:30.16. He also has the world-leading time and holds the European record in the U20 mile at 3:51.30. The youngest of the three Ingebrigtsen brothers to compete internationally, he also holds the European U20 record at 5,000 (13:02.03). He finished fourth in the 1,500m final at Doha.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B299HPUoDVO/

Selemon Berega of Ethiopia, who won the silver medal in the 5,000m at in the World Championships at Doha, and holds the world U20 lead in the 5,000m at 12:53.04 and in the 10,000m at 26:49:46. Berega finished fifth at the World Cross-Country Championships in Denmark.

JUST IN: Oscar Chelimo puts up a lowly show in heat 1 of the men's 5000m at the @iaaforg World Championships.

Chelimo broke off early after 2000m, and was beaten for pace in 3500m by the pack led by Selemon Berega.#KawowoUpdates #WorldAthleticsChamps pic.twitter.com/yML6Pe1RCG

— Kawowo Sports (@kawowosports) September 27, 2019

Alison de los Santos of Brazil, who broke the South American U20 record in the 400m hurdles seven times, held the world U20 lead in the 400m hurdles at 48.28, won the event at the Pan Am Games, and finished seventh at the World Championships.

Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia, who won the silver medal in the 3,000m steeplechase at the World Championships, and holds the world U20 lead at 8:01.36. Girma also holds the Ethiopian senior record in the event.

Canadian Running predicts: Berega. Ingebrigtsen has a higher profile, but Berega out-performed him at both the World Championships and World Cross.

Female Rising Star Award nominees

Britany Anderson of Jamaica, who broke the world U20 record in the 100m hurdles, at 12.71.

Lemlem Hailu of Ethiopia, who ran the world U20 lead in the 1,500m with 4:02.97, took the bronze medal in the 1,500m at the African Games, and made it to the semi-finals at the World Championships in Doha.

Glenda Morejon of Ecuador, who set the world best in the U20 20K race walk in 1:25:29 and set the world U20 lead and South American U20 record in the 10K race walk at 43:04.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B3uzoUnJNto/

Sha’Carri Richardson of the US, who set the U20 world record in the 100m at 10.75 and the world U20 record in the 200m at 22.17. Richardson is also the NCAA 100m champion.

Canadian Running predicts: Richardson.