体坛英语新闻：Vivian Cheruiyot awarded as Best Sportswoman of the Year

LONDON, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan runner Vivian Cheruiyot won the Laureus Award on Monday as the best Sportswoman of the Year.

She snatched gold medals of both 5,000 and 10,000 meters at the World Championships in Daegu.

One of the great distance runners of this generation, Cheruiyot ran a final kilometer in the 5,000 meters competition of 2 minutes and 41.76 seconds, the fastest ever in World Championship history.

In the 10,000 meters, she finished as her personal best with 30 minutes 48.98 seconds. Earlier this year Cheruiyot won the World Cross-Country Championship in Punta Umbria in Spain.

In the award ceremony, the 29-year-old lady in her silver evening dress appeared emotional, with her voice shaking. "Last year was a big year for me," she said.

Cheruiyot said she started running 5,000 meters since the age of 14. "I prefer the 5,000 because I used to do it. The 10,000 I started last year."

When asked about her advice to young people who would like to be involved in the sport, Cheruiyot said, "you have to love it."