The world running organisation the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS) and awards sponsor ASICS are delighted to announce Kenyan athletes Geoffrey Mutai and Mary Keitany as the male and female AIMS/ASICS World Athletes of the Year for 2011.

Today in Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates, Keitany and Mutai's outstanding achievements were given global recognition during a presentation in the race village for the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon.

Race Director of the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon and AIMS PR Manager for Asia, Nathan Clayton presented Keitany & Mutai with the acclaimed Golden Shoe Trophy during an awards ceremony at a media event in advance of the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon, taking place on Friday, 17 February 2012. As a result of her World Record breaking performance of 1:05:50 in last year's Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon, Mary Keitany was awarded the AIMS World's Fastest Time Award (presented in recognition of World Record Breaking performances) at the same time.

In 2011 Geoffrey Mutai (30) became the first person in history to win the Boston and New York marathons in the same year with record times in both. He won the Boston Marathon in the fastest time ever recorded for a marathon at 2:03:02, almost three minutes faster than the course record. However, due to wind assistance and overall drop on the point to point course this time could not be ratified as a world record. Geoffrey would return to Boston in June to compete in the inaugural Boston Athletics Association (B.A.A.) 10k where he won in a State record and personal best time of 27:19. In November of 2011, Geoffrey won the New York Marathon in a course record time of 2:05:06, slicing 2 minutes and 37 seconds off the venerable event's 10 year old course record.

Mary Keitany joins a very exclusive club with her second AIMS/ASICS World Athlete of the Year award, her first coming in 2009. Mary is one of five female athletes who have won the award more than once. The others are; Lornah Kiplagat (NED, 2 wins), Paula Radcliffe (GBR, 3 wins), Tegla Loroupe (KEN, 4 wins) and Uta Pippig (GER, 2 wins). 

Mary began 2011 in blistering form, winning the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon in a World Record time of 1:05:50.  In March she won the London Marathon in a personal best time of 2:19:19, making her the fourth fastest woman at that time over the marathon distance behind only Paula Radcliffe, Catherine Ndereba and Mizuki Noguchi.

The AIMS/ASICS World Athlete of the Year Awards were founded in 1992 and are decided each year from nominations made by the 310 member races of AIMS. Previous female winners include Liz McColgan (GBR), Uta Pippig (GER), Tegla Loroupe (KEN), Naoko Takahashi (JPN), Catherine Ndereba (KEN), Paula Radcliffe (GBR), Mizuki Noguchi (JPN), Lornah Kiplagat (NED) and Constantina Dita (ROM). Previous male winners include Benson Masya (KEN), Dionicio Cerón (MEX), Vincent Rousseau (BEL), Paul Tergat (KEN), Josia Thugwane (RSA), Ronaldo da Costa (BRA), Abel Antón (ESP), Gezahenge Abera (ETH), Josephat Kiprono (KEN), Khalid Khannouchi (USA), Stefano Baldini (ITA), Jaouad Gharib (MAR), Haile Gebrselassie (ETH), the late Samuel Wanjiru (KEN) and Patrick Makau (KEN). 

AIMS President Paco Borao comments: "It is an honour for AIMS to recognise these fantastic Kenyan athletes with the AIMS/ASICS World Athlete of the Year Award. Both Geoffrey and Mary demonstrated exceptional form last year which is reflected in their outstanding achievements. It is with great pleasure we recognise their achievements on behalf of the 310 members of AIMS in over 95 countries throughout the world. I would like to give special thanks to Nathan Clayton, Race Director of the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon and AIMS Continental PR Manager for Asia for his work in making these presentations possible as part of this fantastic event."

Geoffrey Mutai comments: "I am honoured to win this prestigious award. I know how many great Kenyan athletes have won it in the past and it is a great honour to be named in the same company as them. I'm happy to be back in the RAK half marathon, which is a great race. For me it's a good preparation on the way to the Boston Marathon. I would like to thank AIMS, their members and award sponsors ASICS for presenting me with this trophy."

Mary Keitany comments: "To be named as AIMS/ASICS World Athlete of the Year for a second time in my career is an incredible honour. To be presented this award alongside my fellow Kenyan Geoffrey makes it all the more special. I would like to extend my sincere thanks to AIMS for their support and award sponsors ASICS for this prestigious award."

Race Director, Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon and AIMS Continental PR Manager for Asia, Nathan Clayton comments: "I am delighted to host this presentation at the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon. It is especially pleasing to welcome Mary back to the race where she broke the Half Marathon World Record in 2011 and Geoffrey as a past winner of this event. I would like to thank the AIMS board for choosing this event as the host of such a prestigious ceremony."

 

AIMS/ASICS World Athlete of the Year Awards Information Page

The AIMS/ASICS World Athlete of the Year Awards were founded in 1992 and are decided each year by way of nominations made by the members of the world body The Association of International Marathons & Distance Races (AIMS) member races. The membership totals some 310 races in over 95 countries covering every continent of the world.

A male and female winner is recognised each year for their outstanding athletic achievement and as ambassadors for their sport and country.

The award is sponsored by sports company ASICS and each winner is awarded a golden ASICS shoe.

AIMS/ASICS World Athlete of the Year Award 2011 – Athlete Biographies

 

Geoffrey Mutai

Five days after his 27th birthday Geoffrey Mutai bettered his personal best by nearly five minutes to win the 2008 Eindhoven Marathon in a new course record of 2:07:50. In Eindhoven the next year he defended his title with a personal best of 2:07:01, running solo from 35-40km in 14:24. He followed up the next month by winning the Valencia Half Marathon in  59:30, beating his compatriot Wilson Kipsang who had earlier in the year run 58:59.

The affable Mutai's next Maathon outing was in the 2010 Rotterdam Marathon, where he had to give best to current Marathon world record holder Patrick Makau, finishing second in a sensational time of 2:04:55. In a rewarding but frustrating turn of events, Makau also nipped him in the Berlin Marathon later that year where he ran 2:05:10 to Makau's winning 2:05:08. He went on to record 59:38 in the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon at the end of November.

Mutai was more fortunate in the BAA Boston Marathon in April 2011, where he edged Moses Mosop to record the fastest ever Marathon time of 2:03:02. This could not be ratified as a world record because of overall drop to the course, and strong wind assistance. He returned to Boston in June to record a fast 10km time of 27:19. Perhaps his most impressive performance to date came in the New York City Marathon where he won in 2:05:06, slicing 2 minutes 37 seconds off the venerable event's 10-year old course record.

Mary Keitany

Mary recorded two sub-69 half marathon times in 2007 before she shot to prominence with her performance in the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships held that year in Udine, Italy. According to a contemporary report: "at about 10km Kenya's Mary Keitany had the temerity to challenge [defending champion and hot favourite Lornah Kiplagat] and pulled ahead to lead by a few seconds. It took [Kiplagat] a while to shake off the tenacious Keitany, who was still only three seconds down at 15km. Keitany finished [second], just outside the old world record, in 1:06:48, improving the Kenyan national record by a single second.

Keitany took time out in 2008 to have a baby but returned with a vengeance in the 2009 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships held in Birmingham, Great Britain. Keitany dominated the race, finishing with the second fastest time ever, 1:06:36, and led Kenya to an emphatic team win. She broke away from Ethiopia's Aberu Kebebe before 10km and won by over a minute. All this despite being trapped in a lift for nearly an hour the previous day, and having to set the pace without assistance. She passed through 10km in 31:04 and 15km in 46:51, four seconds better than the World record, but "assisted" by excessive drop in the course to that point. She also recorded times of 1:07:00 in Lille and 1:06:54 in New Delhi. Her achievements in 2009 won her the title of AIMS/ASICS Athlete of the Year.

In 2010 she continued where she left off, running 1:07:14 in Abu Dhabi early in the year and 1:07:40 in Berlin on 9 May, a time recorded en route to a new world record of 1:19:53 for 25km. She completed her year with the New York City Marathon, finishing a relatively disappointing third in 2:29:01.

Shaking off such a setback in her debut Marathon, Keitany returned to her favoured distance in the Ras-Al Khaimah Half Marathon on 13 February 2011:  "With a slight breeze coming from the east, but in conditions that were otherwise perfect (17°C) she passed through 5km in 15:18, already five seconds up on Dire Tune, the winner here two years ago. She remained cool through 10km (30:45), and was way ahead schedule but in the second half she held the pace well. The 15km split of 46:40 showed her resilience, and she was able to follow pacemaker Simon Tonui through to 20km (1:02:36) while slowing only slightly to record the first "unassisted" sub-66 minute time for the Half Marathon."

Two months later she tried another Marathon, in London, and with a typically front-running performance on a course which is not the easiest she scored a commanding win in 2:19:19. Later in the year she  returned to New York but set an over-ambitious pace for the first half of the race and after building up a big lead she faded in the final kilometres to finish third in 2:23:38.

 

AIMS HISTORY

 

AIMS was firmly established in May 1982 with its first Congress in London.  Informal discussions had been held over the previous two years amongst some of the world's leading marathon race directors with a view to setting up such an association.  Meetings were held in New York, Honolulu and other venues prior to the formal meeting in London.

AIMS was initially established with the idea of providing a forum for the exchange of ideas that would help to improve each attending director's race. However, once it was decided to write Articles of Association it was found necessary to go beyond just the exchange of ideas and to set some basic rules to govern the association and membership.

As stated in Article Two of the Association:

The objectives of the Association shall be to:

a)         Foster and promote distance running throughout the world.

b)         Work with the International Association of Athletic Federations on all matters relating to international road races, and

c)         Exchange information, knowledge and expertise among the members of the Association.

 

From those beginnings thirty years ago AIMS has made remarkable progress.

At the 5th World Congress in 1989 in Melbourne, Australia, membership was extended beyond just marathons to all road races. Membership was further extended at the 16th World Congress of AIMS in March 2007 held in Xiamen, China to explicitly include races held off-road.  Through a partnership with agencies of the Greek national government AIMS opened a permanent headquarters at the spiritual home of the Marathon in November 2011, within the Olympic Complex in Athens. From this date OPAP-VisitGreece has become the Patron of AIMS

AIMS has firmly established itself as the major force behind the development and progress of distance running throughout the world. From an initial membership of 28 in 1982, it has grown to over 310 member events in over 95 countries and territories including most of the world's premier marathons and many other major road races. 

Course measurement methods and standards established by AIMS have been recognised by the IAAF who have adopted the AIMS system as its own standard.

AIMS has recognised the world's fastest times on the road and successfully proposed the criteria that have been officially adopted by the IAAF for the verification of World Records.

IAAF and AIMS co-operate on matters relating to doping control and the holding of course measurement seminars in various parts of the world. "Distance Running" is a quarterly magazine published jointly that goes out to some 400,000 runners worldwide.

Starting from 2012 OPAP-Visit Greece has become AIMS' Patron. The presenting partner of AIMS is MYLAPS, a company that has led innovation in chip timing for road running. ASICS Corporation has been Sports Partner of AIMS for many years and they have worked together in a most harmonious and productive way, establishing initiatives such as the 'AIMS/ASICS Athletes of the Year Awards'. Sports Drink Partner Lucozade and other partners of AIMS, Citizen Watch Company, Konica-Minolta, Rohm Semiconductor, Marathon-Photos.com, Valencia Tourism Agency and 1000km Promotions have all been very closely involved in assisting the development of the sport of distance running throughout the world.

AIMS is also committed to social initiatives such as the AIMS Children Series, the AIMS Museum of Running and the AIMS Marathon Symposium.

For Further Information on AIMS please visit the AIMS Web site: www.aimsworldrunning.org

 

Peter McLean

 

                             Winners To Date

 

Year of Award	Male Winner	Female Winner
1992	Benson Masya (Kenya)	Liz McColgan (Scotland)
1993	Dionicio Ceron (Mexico)	No Award
1994	Vincent Rousseau (Belgium)	Uta Pippig (Germany)
1995	No Award	Tegla Loroupe (Kenya)
1996	Paul Tergat (Kenya)	Uta Pippig (Germany)
1997	Josia Thugwane (South Africa)	Tegla Loroupe (Kenya)
1998	Ronaldo da Costa (Brazil)	Tegla Loroupe (Kenya)
1999	Abel Anton (Spain)	Tegla Loroupe (Kenya)
2000	Gezahenge Abera (Ethiopia)	Naoko Takahashi (Japan)
2001	Josephat Kiprono (Kenya)	Catherine Ndereba (Kenya)
2002	Khalid Kannouchi (USA)	Paula Radcliffe (England)
2003	Paul Tergat (Kenya)	Paula Radcliffe (England)
2004	Stefano Baldini (Italy)	Mizuki Noguchi (Japan)
2005	Jaouad Gharib (Morocco)	Paula Radcliffe (England)
2006	Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopia)	Lornah Kiplagat (Netherlands)
2007	Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopia)	Lornah Kiplagat (Netherlands)
2008	Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopia)	Constantina Dita (Romania)
2009	Sammy Wanjiru (Kenya)	Mary Keitany (Kenya)
2010	Patrick Makau (Kenya)	Liliya Shobukhova (Russia)
2011	Geoffrey Mutai (Kenya)	Mary Keitany (Kenya)