LAST YEAR IN THIS SPOT we wrote, “It’s not uncommon for the AOY to also nab POY honors, which Mondo Duplantis did. But while it’s not unheard-of, it is uncommon for stars, no matter how super, to receive votes for 3 different performances. But Mondo is anything but common and the nonpareil vaulter scored a trifecta.” So no, he didn’t get a trifecta again this year… would you believe a quadrifecta? In addition to No. 1 he got mentions that put him in spots 6, =9 & =17.
The 26 performances which received recognition in our 5-4-3-2-1 scoring system:
1. Mondo Duplantis’s 6.30/20-8 WR/WC win, 84 (14 No. 1s)
Last year Mondo managed only a 2-point margin in capturing his second POY title (the first came in ’22, when he also got a vote for No. 6). This year he had absolutely no concerns about just squeaking by, having an immense 64-point gap over his nearest rival and captured 14 of the 18 No. 1s. As overwhelming as the Swede’s support was, his fourth WR of the year got 3 votes for No. 2 and 1 for No. 4 as 8 voters ignored it altogether.
2. Mykolas Alekna’s 75.56/247-11 WR, 20
When the wind is right, it can add monstrous amounts of distance to discus throws. For right-handed throwers, think a breeze coming in from the right quarter. But you’ve got to know how to handle the wind, not to mention knowing how to find it. The event’s current mecca is in Ramona, Oklahoma, and the Lithuanian plate great scored on both conditions, twice raising his own WR, first to 243-11 (74.35) then to 247-11 (75.56).
=3. Ethan Katzberg’s 84.70/277-11 WL/WC win, 19
Last year Katzberg had what was up until his last meet a perfect season. But in Zagreb he suffered his first loss. It became a reality that this year wouldn’t duplicate that level of perfection as he lost in early July then got nailed twice in early August. His final meet this time around would be the WC and not only did he not lose, he also produced the world’s longest throw since ’03 in moving to No. 5 on the all-time world list.
=3. Daniel Ståhl’s 70.47/231-2 WC win, 19 (1)
Some of our voters place more stock in assessing the climactic and competitive conditions under which a performance was made than its relative position on an all-time list. Thus it is that Alekna’s discus WR ended up only a single point ahead of a mark that was some 15ft (5m) shorter. Indeed, some think that Ståhl’s winning mark in Tokyo was the greatest platter performance ever (see “From The Editor” in the last two month’s issues). The slippery and rainy conditions were that bad.
5. Jacob Kiplimo’s 56:42 WR, 17
Since it happened way back in February, it may be tough to think of it as a ’25 mark, but Jacob Kiplimo’s half-marathon gem has probably been forgotten by many. Said the 24-year-old Ugandan at the time, “It was the perfect race. Ideal temperature, no wind at all, fantastic circuit. Everything went better than expected, but I never imagined to perform under the 57-minute barrier, that’s astonishing.” His second 10K took only 26:56.
Other Vote-Getters
6. Mondo’s 6.29/20-7½ WR, 15
=7. Ryan Crouser’s 22.34/73-3½ WC win, 12 (1)
=7. Jakob Ingebrigtsen’s 3:45.14i WR, 12
=9. Grant Fisher’s 7:22.91i WR, 11 (1)
=9. Mondo’s 6.28/20-7¼ WR, 11
11. Cordell Tinch 12.87 WL, 9
=12. Geordie Beamish’s 8:33.38 WC win, 7 (1)
=12. Collen Kebinatshipi’s 43.53 WL/WC win, 7
14. Pedro Pichardo’s 17.91/58-9¼ WL/WC win, 6
15. Cooper Lutkenhaus’s WJR 1:42.27, 5
16. Isaac Nader’s 3:34.10 WC win, 4
=17. Cole Hocker’s 12:58.30 WR, 3
=17. Mondo’s 6.27/20-6¾i WR, 3
=17. Karsten Warholm’s 46.28 WL, 3
=20. Sabastian Sawe’s 2:02:16 WL, 2
=20. Oblique Seville’s 9.77 WL/WC win, 2
=22. Jimmy Gressier’s WC 10K win, 1
=22. Emmanuel Wanyonyi’s 1:41.44 WL, 1
=22. Warholm’s 32.67 “WR,” 1
=22. Julian Weber’s WL/DLF win, 1
=22. Toshikazu Yamanashi’s 1:16:10 WR, 1 ◻︎
