The European Athlete of the Year Trophy is an annual prize

Athlete of the Year

Athlete of the Year is an award given by various sports organizations for the athlete whom they have determined to be deserving of such recognition....

 awarded to sportspeople participating in athletics, including track and field

Track and field

Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...

, road running

Road running

Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road . These events would be classified as long distance according to athletics terminology, with distances typically ranging from 5 kilometers to 42.2 kilometers in the marathon. They may involve large numbers of runners...

 and cross country running

Cross country running

Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...

 competitions. The election has been organised by the European governing body for the sport of athletics, the European Athletic Association

European Athletic Association

The European Athletic Association is the European governing body for the sport of athletics.- History :In 1932, during a meeting of the International Amateur Athletic Federation in Los Angeles, a special committee was designated by the Council with the task of reviewing the conditions for the...

 (EAA), since 1993

1993 in sports

1993 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Marc Girardelli, Luxembourg** Women's overall season champion: Anita Wachter, Austria-American football:...

.

Each year, a shortlist is created by selecting the top European athlete in each event, based upon performances at the year's major championships. Only in exceptional circumstances will more than one athlete be shortlisted per event. Athletes who have served a doping ban of two years or more are ineligible. Via the EAA website, fans, media and members of the EAA federations are allowed to vote for five male and five female athletes on the list, with athletes receiving one to five points based on their ranking. A panel of experts also cast their votes. The votes of each of the four groups comprises 25% of the athletes' total scores, and the male and female athletes with the highest combined points totals win.

The European Athletics Rising Star of the Year Award was inaugurated in 2007. The award, open to athletes under 23 years of age, was created as a way of acknowledging young competitors' achievements on their way to becoming senior athletes.

Waterford Crystal

Waterford Crystal

Waterford Crystal is a trademark brand of crystal glassware, previously produced in Waterford, Ireland, though the factory there was shut down after the receivership of Waterford Wedgwood plc in early 2009...

 sponsored the event from 2002–2008 and MONDO

Mondo

Mondo , may also refer to:-Currency:* Mondo , the possible name of a worldwide established currency-Culture and entertainment:Fictional characters* Mondo , a comic book character...

, a manufacturer of track and field

Track and field

Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...

 equipment and facilities, sponsored the 2009 presentation.

Winners

Year	Men	Women
1993 1993 in athletics (track and field) -International events:* African Championships* Asian Championships* Bolivarian Games* Central American and Caribbean Games* Central American Championships* East Asian Games* Maccabiah Games* Mediterranean Games* Chinese National Games...	Linford Christie Linford Christie Linford Cicero Christie OBE is a former sprinter from the United Kingdom. He is the only British man to have won gold medals in the 100 metres at all four major competitions open to British athletes: the Olympic Games, the World Championships, the European Championships and the Commonwealth Games...	Sally Gunnell Sally Gunnell Sally Jane Janet Gunnell OBE is a former British Olympic champion in the 400 m hurdles...
1994 1994 in athletics (track and field) -International Events:* Asian Games* Balkan Games* Commonwealth Games* European Championships* European Indoor Championships* Jeux de la Francophonie* Goodwill Games* World Cross Country Championships* World Junior Championships-Women:...	Colin Jackson Colin Jackson Colin Ray Jackson CBE is a British former sprint and hurdling athlete who specialised in the 110 metres hurdles. Over his career representing Great Britain and Wales he won an Olympic silver medal, became world champion three times, went undefeated at the European Championships for 12 years and...	Irina Privalova Irina Privalova Irina Anatoljewna Privalova is a Russian athlete.She first competed in the sprint events, winning two Olympic medals in the 100 m and 200 m in 1992 whilst representing the Unified Team. Irina Privalova had been a formidable competitor during most of the 1990s but had not yet won an...
1995	Jonathan Edwards Jonathan Edwards (athlete) Jonathan David Edwards, CBE, is a former British triple jumper. He is a former Olympic, Commonwealth, European and World champion, and has held the world record in the event since 1995....	Sonia O'Sullivan Sonia O'Sullivan Sonia O'Sullivan in Cobh, County Cork. She began her running career in Ballymore Running Club which is located in the eastern side of Cobh Town. She was one of the world's leading female 5000 m runners for most of the 1990s and early first decade of the 21st century...
1996	Jan Železný Jan Železný Jan Železný is a Czech javelin thrower, world and Olympic champion and world record holder in javelin throw...	Svetlana Masterkova Svetlana Masterkova Svetlana Alexandrovna Masterkova is a Russian former middle distance runner and current world record holder for the mile. At the 1996 Summer Olympics, she won the gold medal in both the 800 and 1,500 metres....
1997	Wilson Kipketer Wilson Kipketer Wilson Kosgei Kipketer is a Kenyan born Danish former middle distance runner. He holds the current indoor world records at the 1000 and 800 metres distance. While dominating the 800 m distance for a decade, remaining undefeated for a three-year period and running 8 of the 17 currently all-time...	Astrid Kumbernuss Astrid Kumbernuss Astrid Kumbernuss is a former German female shot putter and discus thrower.Her career started at the SC Neubrandenburg sports club. Her greatest successes were gold medals at the 1995, 1997 and 1999 World Championships in Athletics, and the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta...
1998 1998 in athletics (track and field) This page shows the main events during the 1998 year in athletics throughout the world.-Championships:* African Championships* Asian Championships* Asian Games* Balkan Games* Central American and Caribbean Games* Commonwealth Games...	Jonathan Edwards Jonathan Edwards (athlete) Jonathan David Edwards, CBE, is a former British triple jumper. He is a former Olympic, Commonwealth, European and World champion, and has held the world record in the event since 1995....	Christine Arron
1999 1999 in athletics (track and field) This page shows the main events during the 1999 year in athletics throughout the world.-International Events:* All-Africa Games* Balkan Games* Central American and Caribbean Championships* Pan American Games* Pan Arab Games...	Tomáš Dvořák Tomáš Dvorák Tomáš Dvořák is an athlete from the Czech Republic. He competed in decathlon and heptathlon for the team Dukla Prague. He is triple decathlon world champion and a former world record holder , which is still second performance in all-time list...	Gabriela Szabo Gabriela Szabo Gabriela Szabo is a Romanian track and field athlete, winner of the gold medal in the 2000 Summer Olympics in 5000 m and winner of bronze and silver medals in 1996 Summer Olympics and 2000 Summer Olympics in 1500 m, respectively....
2000 2000 in athletics (track and field) This article contains an overview of the sport of athletics, including track and field, cross country and road running, in the year 2000.The primary athletics competition for the 2000 season was at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.-World:...	Jan Železný Jan Železný Jan Železný is a Czech javelin thrower, world and Olympic champion and world record holder in javelin throw...	Trine Hattestad Trine Hattestad Trine Hattestad is a former Norwegian javelin thrower. She was born on 18 April 1966 in Lørenskog, Norway....
2001 2001 in athletics (track and field) This article contains an overview of the sport of athletics, including track and field, cross country and road running, in the year 2001.The foremost competition of the season was the 2001 World Championships in Athletics in Edmonton, Canada...	André Bucher André Bucher André Bucher is a retired Swiss 800 metres runner. He is best known for winning the gold medal at the 2001 World Championships in Edmonton in his event. Bucher also won the indoor bronze that same year....	Stephanie Graf Stephanie Graf Stephanie Graf is a former Austrian middle distance runner.She finished second to Maria de Lurdes Mutola in the women's 800 meters at both the 2000 Olympics in Sydney and the 2001 World Athletics Championships in Edmonton, Alberta.Her time from the 2000 Olympics, 1:56.64 minutes, is the current...
2002 2002 in athletics (track and field) This article contains an overview of the sport of athletics, including track and field, cross country and road running, in the year 2002.There was no primary championships that season, although continental championships were held in Africa, Asia and Europe. The foremost athletics competitions at...	Dwain Chambers Dwain Chambers Dwain Anthony Chambers is an English sprinter of Afro-Caribbean descent. He has won medals on the international stage numerous times and is one of the fastest European sprinters in the history of recorded athletics. His primary event is the 100 metres sprint, in which he has the second...	Süreyya Ayhan Sureyya Ayhan Süreyya Ayhan Kop is a Turkish former middle distance track runner who specialised in the 1500 metres. In November 2009, she was banned for lifetime by the Court of Arbitration for Sport due to failing a doping test....
2003 2003 in athletics (track and field) This article contains an overview of the sport of athletics, including track and field, cross country and road running, in the year 2003.The foremost competition of the year was the 2003 World Championships in Athletics, followed by the 2003 IAAF World Indoor Championships...	Christian Olsson Christian Olsson Christian Olsson is a Swedish athlete competing in high jump and triple jump. He has won an Olympic gold medal, three gold and one silver medal in the World Championships and two gold medals in the European Championships...	Carolina Klüft Carolina Klüft Carolina Evelyn Klüft is a Swedish athlete competing in triple jump, long jump and formerly in heptathlon and pentathlon. She won the Olympic heptathlon title in 2004...
2004 2004 in athletics (track and field) This article contains an overview of the sport of athletics, including track and field, cross country and road running, in the year 2004.The major competition of the year was the 2004 Summer Olympics. At the event, Yelena Isinbayeva cleared a world record 4.91 m in the pole vault...	Christian Olsson Christian Olsson Christian Olsson is a Swedish athlete competing in high jump and triple jump. He has won an Olympic gold medal, three gold and one silver medal in the World Championships and two gold medals in the European Championships...	Kelly Holmes Kelly Holmes Dame Kelly Holmes, DBE, MBE is a retired British middle distance athlete. She specialised in the 800 metres and 1500 metres events and won a gold medal for both distances at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens...
2005 2005 in athletics (track and field) This page shows the main events during the 2005 year in athletics throughout the world.-World:* World Championships* World Athletics Final* World Cross Country Championships* World Half Marathon Championships* World Youth Championships...	Virgilijus Alekna Virgilijus Alekna Virgilijus Alekna is a Lithuanian athlete who specialises in the discus throw. He won medals at the 2000, 2004 and 2008 Olympics, including two golds.-Career:...	Yelena Isinbayeva Yelena Isinbayeva Yelena Gadzhievna Isinbayeva is a Russian pole vaulter. She is twice an Olympic gold medalist , five-times a World Champion, and the current world record holder in the event...
2006 2006 in athletics (track and field) The following events in athletics took place in 2006:-Championships:* March: 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships * March: 2006 Commonwealth Games...	Francis Obikwelu Francis Obikwelu Francis Obiorah Obikwelu, born 22 November 1978 in Nigeria and a Portuguese citizen since 2001, is a sprint athlete specializing in 100 metres and 200 metres. He holds the record for the fastest time in the 100 m set by a European competitor with a time of 9.86 seconds...	Carolina Klüft Carolina Klüft Carolina Evelyn Klüft is a Swedish athlete competing in triple jump, long jump and formerly in heptathlon and pentathlon. She won the Olympic heptathlon title in 2004...
2007 2007 in athletics (track and field) This article contains an overview of the sport of athletics, including track and field, cross country and road running, in the year 2007.-World:*World Championships in Athletics*World Athletics Final*World Cross Country Championships...	Tero Pitkämäki Tero Pitkämäki Tero Kristian Pitkämäki is a Finnish javelin thrower and the former World Champion. Pitkämäki is known for his rivalry with Olympic champion Andreas Thorkildsen. The two are very close friends, however...	Blanka Vlašić Blanka Vlašic Blanka Vlašić is a Croatian athlete who specialises in the high jump. She is the current Croatian record holder in the event, and also the current indoorWorld Champion. The daughter of Croatian decathlon record holder Joško Vlašić, she was a talented junior athlete and attended her first Olympic...
2008 2008 in athletics (track and field) -International events:*2008 Summer Olympic Games, held in Beijing, China*African Championships, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia*European Cup, super league held in Annecy, France*World Indoor Championships, held in Valencia, Spain...	Andreas Thorkildsen Andreas Thorkildsen Andreas Thorkildsen is a Norwegian javelin thrower, born in Kristiansand. He is the first male javelin thrower in history to be European champion, World champion and Olympic champion...	Yelena Isinbayeva Yelena Isinbayeva Yelena Gadzhievna Isinbayeva is a Russian pole vaulter. She is twice an Olympic gold medalist , five-times a World Champion, and the current world record holder in the event...
2009 2009 in athletics (track and field) This page contains an overview of the year 2009 in athletics.The major competition of the year was the 2009 World Championships in Athletics. At the event, Usain Bolt reaffirmed himself as one of the world's foremost athletes with world records in the 100 and 200 metres...	Phillips Idowu Phillips Idowu Phillips Olaosebikan Idowu MBE is a Nigerian-English triple jumper...	Marta Domínguez Marta Domínguez Marta Domínguez Azpeleta is a Spanish runner. She was accused of drug dealing and but later acquitted .Dominguez currently competes mainly in 3000 m steeplechase, a distance in which she was the 2009 world champion...
2010 2010 in athletics (track and field) In 2010 there was no obvious, primary athletics championship, as neither the Summer Olympics nor the World Championships in Athletics occurred in the year...	Christophe Lemaitre Christophe Lemaitre Christophe Lemaitre is a French sprinter, who specialises in the 100 and 200 metres. He is the French 100 m and 200 m record holder with a time of 9.92 seconds and 19.80 seconds as well as being the first caucasian to break the 10-second barrier in an officially timed event.At...	Blanka Vlašić Blanka Vlašic Blanka Vlašić is a Croatian athlete who specialises in the high jump. She is the current Croatian record holder in the event, and also the current indoorWorld Champion. The daughter of Croatian decathlon record holder Joško Vlašić, she was a talented junior athlete and attended her first Olympic...
2011 2011 in athletics (track and field) In 2011, the foremost athletics event will be the 2011 World Championships in Athletics in Daegu. Other major global level competitions set to occur in 2011 are the World Cross Country Championships and the World Half Marathon Championships....	Mo Farah	Mariya Savinova Mariya Savinova Mariya Savinova is a Russian athlete, who specializes in the 800 metres. She won the gold medal at the 2010 European Championships in Barcelona with a time of 1:58.22....

Rising Star winners

Year	Men	Women
2007	Andrew Howe Andrew Howe Andrew Howe is an Italian athlete who specializes in the long jump. He won this event as well as the 200 metres at the 2004 World Junior Championships. He was successful at senior level at a young age, winning a long jump bronze at the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships before becoming the...	Jessica Ennis Jessica Ennis Jessica Ennis, MBE is a British track and field athlete specialising in multi-eventing disciplines and 100m hurdles...
2008	Raphael Holzdeppe Raphael Holzdeppe Raphael Marcel Holzdeppe is a German pole vaulter.He finished fifth at the 2006 World Junior Championships and won the 2008 World Junior Championships. At the 2007 European Junior Championships he notably got no result, having no-heighted in the qualifying round.His personal best jump is 5.80...	Stephanie Twell Stephanie Twell Stephanie April "Steph" Twell is a Scottish middle distance runner. She was the winner of the 1500 metres at the World Junior Championships in 2008, and is a three time winner of the European Cross Country Championships junior women's race as well as being part of four winning Great Britain...
2009	Christophe Lemaitre Christophe Lemaitre Christophe Lemaitre is a French sprinter, who specialises in the 100 and 200 metres. He is the French 100 m and 200 m record holder with a time of 9.92 seconds and 19.80 seconds as well as being the first caucasian to break the 10-second barrier in an officially timed event.At...	Karoline Bjerkeli Grøvdal
2010	Teddy Tamgho Teddy Tamgho Teddy Tamgho is a French triple jumper. He is the third best ever triple jumper in all conditions with a mark of 17.98 metres from the Adidas Grand Prix in June 2010....	Sandra Perković Sandra Perković Sandra Perković is a Croatian discus thrower. After a successful junior career, she won the discus throw gold medal at the 2010 European Championships, in her first year of senior competition...
2011	David Storl David Storl David Storl is a German athlete who specialises in the shot put. He was successful on the youth and junior athletics circuit, winning gold medals at the World Youth Championships and World Junior Championships...	Jodie Williams Jodie Williams Jodie Alicia Williams is a junior British sprinter, who specialises in the 100 metres and the 200 metres. She is the former World Youth Champion over both distances, the reigning World Junior and European Junior Champion in the 100 m and European Junior Champion in the 200 m.Williams had...