Ethiopian is Female Athlete of the Year

BBC NEWS AT BBC.CO.UK/NEWS

Genzebe Dibaba of Ethiopia won the International Association of Athletics Federations female athlete of the year award for 2015. Dibaba, 24, set a new 1,500-meter world record of 3 minutes, 50.07 seconds, at the World Championships competition in Beijing in August 2015. She also won the 1,500-meter gold and 5,000-meter bronze.

Dibaba’s family is something of an athletic dynasty. Her older sister Tirunesh is a celebrated athlete who won more than 19 major medals, including five Olympic medals in the 2008 and 2012 games. Another older sister, Ejegayehu, won the silver medal in the 10,000 meters at the 2004 Summer Olympics. Her cousin, Derartu Tulu, won the 10,000 meters in the 1992 and 2000 Olympics.

“After narrowly missing out on this award one year ago, I am very proud to be recognized by the fans and experts of our sport,” she said.