Canadian Andre De Grasse after winning bronze in the men's 100-metre race at the Rio Olympics on August 14, 2016.John Lehmann/The Globe and Mail
Canada's Andre De Grasse won the Rising Star Award for 2016 from track and field's world governing body.
The IAAF presented its annual awards Friday in a gala ceremony in Monaco.
The 22-year-old from Markham, Ont., won medals in all three events in his Olympic debut in Rio – silver in the 200 metres, bronze in the 100 metres, and bronze in the 4x100 relay.
De Grasse's light-hearted rivalry with Jamaican superstar Usain Bolt made for some of the most memorable images of the Rio Games.
Read more: Small, light and unconventional: How does Andre De Grasse do it?
From the archives: Andre De Grasse hopes to put Canadian sprinting back in the spotlight
The winners were chosen by athletics officials, athletes, journalists and an online public poll.
Bolt, who won three gold medals in Rio, was chosen male athlete of the year for the sixth time. He finished first in the 100, 200 and 4x100 metres to repeat his triples from the 2012 London Games and the Beijing Games in 2008.
Almaz Ayana of Ethiopia won the women's award, after her world-record run to win Olympic gold in the 10,000 metres.
Ayana smashed the world record in the Olympic 10,000m. Her time of 29:17.45 shaved more than 14 seconds off the previous best.
Bolt again said he doesn't plan to run the 200 metres in his final season, realizing that his world record of 19.19 seconds is now likely beyond him.
Speaking Friday, the 30-year-old Bolt said he thought he could dip under the 19-second barrier at the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. But coming off the bend in the final, he felt his legs didn't have a record-beating performance in them.
"After last season, I kind of figured out that no matter how hard I work at this point, it probably is going to be hard to get the 200-meter world record," Bolt said. "And it's a lot more work and for me, coming to the end of my career, I'm not trying to do too much work."
He also didn't sound optimistic about breaking his 100-metre record of 9.58, either.
"If I can go through my season – which I doubt – without any injuries, then anything is possible," he said.
Bolt ruled out a return for the 2020 Tokyo Games. The nine-time Olympic champion said his coach has told him, " 'Do not retire and come back to the sport, don't ever do that.' …So you have got to make sure you are sure.
"Not to brag or anything, but a lot of people at 30 haven't accomplished what I've accomplished, so, for me, I think I've done all I wanted to," Bolt said.
He made it clear that his last season would be more of a farewell tour than a final drive for more records. He's targeting a few races in his favourite places: he mentioned Ostrava, Lausanne and Paris.
With files from The Associated Press