Barshim and Thiam Win IAAF 2017 Athlete of the Year Awards in Monaco

By Adam Kopet

The IAAF held the annual IAAF Athletics Awards on Friday in Monaco. The highlight of the awards is the announcement of the IAAF Athlete of the Year Awards.

The 2017 award winners are Mutaz Essa Barshim of Qatar and Nafissatou Thiam of Belgium.

Barshim, 26, went undefeated in 11 competitions in the high jump, including winning the IAAF World Outdoor Championships and the Diamond League title. He had nine of the best 11 jumps in the world and finished the season with the world lead at 7-10.5 (2.40m).

Thiam, 23, jumped to third on the all-time women's heptathlon list with her 7,013 points at the IAAF Combined Events Challenge meeting in Gotzis. She added the European Indoor pentathlon title and the World Championships heptathlon title to her big year.