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Ennis and Farah named Britain's best athletes

Jessica Ennis poses with flowers after snatching the heptathlon gold in Barcelona © Getty Images

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World and European heptathlon champion Jessica Ennis has capped off a magnificent 2010 by picking up the British Athlete of the Year award for the second year running.

The 24-year-old, who set new championship records on her way to winning the pentathlon world indoor title and the European title in the heptathlon, ran away with the vote after topping the world rankings for the second year in a row.

After the British Athletics Writers Association backed her unanimously for the top prize, Ennis said: "It's so nice to have had the votes and won again. Last year was brilliant but you always kind of worry, 'Are you going to perform as well the next year? Make the most of it here and now.' But yes I've had another great year and to win this award again, it's brilliant."

Ennis followed in the footsteps of former 2000 Olympic heptathlon champion Denise Lewis by becoming only the second multi-eventer to win the award more than once. Lewis scooped the award on four occasions and Ennis admitted she has work cut out if she is to match her fellow Brit. "Four times!" Ennis said. "I've got to beat four! That's tough."

Double European champion Mo Farah became the first long-distance runner to win the men's award since Brendan Foster in 1976. Farah, who won the 5000m and 10,000m in Barcelona, pipped Dai Greene with triple jumper Phillips Idowu completing the top three.

"It is a great honour to win the British Athletics Writers' Association male athlete of the year award for the second time," Farah said. "I had a great year in 2010, highlighted by my two gold medals in the European Championships in Barcelona and the British 5000m record in Zurich."

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