Grange salutes Bolt, Blake on IAAF awards

Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, Olivia 'Babsy' Grange, has described Usain Bolt's third consecutive hold on the World Athlete of the Year award as "deserving".

According to Grange, the reigning Olympic double sprint champion had a challenging year, but performances such as winning five of his six 100 metres performances, defending his 200 metres title at the IAAF World Championships and anchoring Jamaica to the 4x100 metres title made him a worthy recipient.

"Bolt deserved to win after a challenging but successful year in which he defended his title in the 200 metres at the World Championships and anchored Jamaica to victory in the 4x100 metres in world record time," said Grange.

Meanwhile, Grange also had glowing words for World 100m champion, Yohan Blake, who copped the Performance of the Year award at the International Athletic Foundation Grand Gala, which was held in Monaco, on Saturday.

Blake won the award for his stunning 19.26 clocking in the 200m at a Diamond League meeting in Brussels, Belgium, the second fastest time ever over the distance. Only Bolt, 19.19, has gone faster.

"I am very proud of the young Jamaicans as their successes underscore the importance of following one's passion, hard work and believing in one's abilities," said Grange.