Neeraj Chopra nominated for World Athlete of the year award

Pole Vaulter Mondo Duplantis won the award last year.

Neeraj Chopra, the Olympic gold medalist, received nomination for the men's world athlete of the year award by World Athletics on Tuesday (October 12th). Every year, the award is presented to the best male athlete in the world based on their performances throughout the season. Neeraj Chopra, 25, has been shortlisted among the top 11 athletes for this prestigious award.

Alongside Neeraj Chopra, the award features some of the most renowned figures in athletics Mondo Duplantis, American sprinter Noah Lyles, Kelvin Kiptum. Neeraj Chopra is one of only two Indian athletes to secure an Olympic gold medal in an individual event (the other being Abhinav Bindra in 2008) and also became the first Indian track and field athlete to win an Olympic gold medal.

His performance this season has been phenomenal having clinched the gold medal at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest earlier this August, with a remarkable throw of 88.17m. He also defended his Asian Games title with an exceptional season best mark of 88.88m in Hangzhou, China. Additionally, he finished second in the Doha Diamond League meet held in May, with a distance of 88.17m. Later that month, he also achieved the first position in the men's javelin throw rankings issued by World Athletics.

Neeraj Chopra is a strong contender for the male athlete of the year award, given his achievements and impact on Indian athletics. However, he faces stiff competition from some of the most prominent names in the world of athletics, such as Mondo Duplantis, who has repeatedly shattered the world record in pole vault throughout the year, and Noah Lyles, who has displayed sheer dominance in the 200m event.

The decision of who wins the Male Athlete of the Year award will be made by a panel of international athletics experts, representing all six continental regions of World Athletics, who have selected a group of athletes as finalists for the Men's World Athlete of the Year 2023 award. The selection of the final five nominees will be determined through a three-step voting process, with the announcement by World Athletics scheduled for either November 13 or 14.

In this process, the World Athletics council and the World Athletics family will submit their votes via email, while fans will have the opportunity to cast their votes online through World Athletics' social media channels. Voting for the same will conclude on October 28th.

The winners of the men's World Athlete of the year 2023 award will be announced on December 11th.