Another miss: World marathon record holder Kimetto and Qatari beaten to the big prize

Shot putter Valerie Adams of New Zealand (right) and World-record pole vaulter Renaud Lavillenie of France after receiving their 2014 IAAF Athletes of the Year trophies during the IAAF Gala in Monte Carlo on Friday. [PHOTO: REUTERS]

Renaud Lavillenie and Valerie Adams were crowned the male and female World Athletes of the Year at the World Athletics Gala on Friday night, a befitting climax to their stunning shows this season.

Lavillenie beat world marathon record holder (2:02.57) Dennis Kimetto and hot-favourite Qatari high jumper Mutaz Essa Barshim (Qatar) to lift the 2014 IAAF World Male Athlete of the Year award.

Kimetto, who stands out as the only runner to dip under 2:03 mark, was among the final three nominees for the big prize that has eluded Kenya since world 800m record holder David Rudisha won in 2010.

Triple world record holder Daniel Komen (3,000m indoor and outdoor and the two-mile records) missed the award by one vote in 1997 before double world champion Vivian Cheruiyot lost it out to Australia’s Sally Pearson in 2011.

But the 2014 awards were the first time that both accolades went to field event athletes. It was also the first time that a male pole vaulter or a female thrower had won the World Athlete of the Year award.

Lavillenie had shown promising shape when clearing 5.93m in late December of 2013. His incredible form continued through the winter, setting French records of 6.04m and 6.08m before the end of January.

Then in February, somewhat audaciously at Sergey Bubka’s own ‘Pole Vault Stars’ meeting in Donetsk, the 28-year-old broke the pole vault world record with a perfect first-time clearance of 6.16m. Bubka’s record was no more.

When attempting to go even higher with the bar set at 6.21m, the Olympic champion sustained a minor injury which delayed the start of his outdoor campaign, but he soon picked up where he left off.

His first IAAF Diamond League win of the season came in Shanghai, where he cleared 5.92m. He followed it with victories in Eugene, Oslo, Lausanne and Paris as he built up towards the defence of his European title. In Zurich in August, Lavillenie duly won his third successive European title, clearing 5.90m to win by the staggering margin of 20 centimetres.

Three weeks later, he set an outdoor world-leading mark of 5.93m to win at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Brussels, thus becoming the only athlete in history to win a fifth Diamond Race title in any event.

Lavillenie ended his season by winning at the IAAF Continental Cup in Marrakesh, fittingly captaining the European team to the overall victory.

Of his 22 competitions in 2014, indoors and outdoors, Lavillenie’s only blemish came when he failed to clear a height in Stockholm; an outstanding record in an event that is known for its unpredictability.

Adams may have thrown farther in previous seasons than she did in 2014, but assessed on its own merits, the shot putter from New Zealand still had a year to remember.