These nominations highlight the remarkable achievements of athletes during the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, various one-day meeting circuits, Label road races, and other global events, as stated by the sport’s international governing body.
Chopra joins an elite group of athletes vying for the award, including shot putter Ryan Crouser from the USA, pole vaulters Mondo Duplantis of Sweden, 3000m steeplechaser Soufiane El Bakkali from Morocco, Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway (1500m/5000m), marathoner Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya, decathlete Pierce LePage of Canada, sprinter Noah Lyles of the USA, race walker Alvaro Martin from Spain, long jumper Miltiadis Tentoglou of Greece, and 400m hurdler Karsten Warholm, also from Norway.
The final selection for the award will involve a three-way voting process. Votes will be cast by the World Athletics Council, the World Athletics Family, and the general public.
Individual graphics for each nominee have been posted on various social media platforms this week. Votes can be cast by ‘liking’ the graphics on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, or through retweets on X.
The final result will be determined by the combination of these votes, with the World Athletics Council’s vote carrying a 50% weightage, while the votes from the World Athletics Family and the public will each account for 25%.
Voting for the World Athletes of the Year will be open until midnight on October 28. The finalists, five women and five men, will be unveiled by World Athletics on November 13-14. The winners of the prestigious award will be announced on December 11 through World Athletics’ official social media platforms.
(With PTI inputs)