November saw the cross country season start in earnest with four European Athletics Cross Country Permit meetings being staged as a prelude to the SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Belgrade, Serbia.
European runners also made an impact in road races around the world.
Consequently, European Athletics is consequently pleased to announce that athletes from 13 different countries have been nominated for the November award.
At the end of each month, a panel of experts produces a shortlist of the outstanding athletes and performances achieved by European athletes during that month, which is then mailed to the European athletics media and thousands of fans who have signed up to receive news from European Athletics.
The European Athlete of the Month fan voting takes place through our Facebook page.
The media poll is open here for the men and here for the women.
The public, media and a group of expert statisticians cast their votes for the European Athlete of the Month with each category counting as 33.3 per cent of the vote.
For example, the winner of each poll will be awarded 10 points, second 9 points, etc. and the athlete with the most points after the three different polls have been counted will be declared the winner.
In the unlikely event of a tie, Hansjörg Wirz, the president of European Athletics, will have the casting vote.
The voting will close on 15 December at noon CET.
The European Athlete of the Month initiative was launched in January 2007 and is designed to recognise outstanding performers at all levels of the sport in Europe.
No athlete who has previously served a two-year doping ban can be nominated for the European Athlete of the Month.
MEN
Abdi Hakin Ulad DEN (cross country): the 2013 European Athletics U23 Championships 10,000m bronze medallist was a convincing winner in 26:38 of the senior 9km race at the Nordic Cross Country Championships in the Icelandic capital Reykjavik on 9 November.
Abraham Kiprotich FRA (marathon): Europe’s fastest man over the classic distance this year won the Istanbul Marathon on 17 November, winning in far from ideal conditions and finishing almost a minute clear of the rest of the field when he crossed the line in 2:12:28.
Alvaro Martin ESP (race walking): the 2013 European Athletics Junior Championships 10,000m bronze medallist won the 26th edition of the Marcha Toledana 5km on the road in 20:03, a Spanish senior best and one of the best performances on record by a junior.
Andy Vernon GBR (cross country): the former SPAR European Cross Country Championships junior and under 23 silver medallist was a convincing winner of the 9.8km men’s race at the British Cross Challenge event in Liverpool, winning in 28:47.
Bashir Abdi BEL (cross country): took the honours in the men’s race at the Lotto CrossCup meeting in Roeselaare on 24 November, covering the tough 9.41km course in 29:02 and winning at the European Athletics Cross Country Permit meeting by 18 seconds.
Dame Tasama BEL (cross country): crossed the border and took the men’s 10km race in 29:58 at the Warandeloop event in the Dutch city of Tilburg, winning at the European Athletics Cross Country Permit meeting by a decisive 13 seconds on 24 November.
Mohamed Marhoum ESP (cross country): a month of good performances in Spanish cross country races was topped by a win at the Cross de Toledo in Spain on 24 November, coming home over 9km in 27:47.
Oleksandr Sitkovskiy UKR (marathon): won the Firenze Marathon in Italy in a personal best time of 2:09:14 on 24 November. It is also second best time by a European runner this year.
Pyotr Trofimov RUS (race walking): finished second at the four-stage Wuzhong International Walking Competition in China between 11-14 November, race walking’s ‘Tour de France’.
Yury Shayunou BLR (hammer): the 2007 and 2009 European Athletics U23 Championships gold medallist threw 78.65m at a winter meeting in Novopolotsk, Belarus, on 22 November.
WOMEN
Albina Mayorova RUS (marathon): now 36 and ninth at the London 2012 Olympic Games, she won the Yokohama Women’s Marathon in Japan on 17 November by nearly three minutes when she crossed the line in 2:25:55.
Alina Reh GER (cross country): still only 16, she had two impressive wins in junior races on the German cross country circuit this month against runners up to three years older than herself, winning in Pforzheim on 9 November and in Darmstadt on 24 November.
Almensch Belete BEL (cross country): running on home soil, she won the women’s 6.25km race at the Lotto CrossCup meeting in Roeselaare on 24 November in 21:33, winning at the European Athletics Cross Country Permit meeting by no less than 23 seconds.
Estela Navacues ESP (cross country): was the leading European runner at the opening IAAF Cross Country Permit meeting of the winter when she finished second on home soil at the Cross Internacional de Soria on 10 November.
Fionnuala Britton IRL (cross country): the reigning SPAR European Cross Country Championships gold medallist prepared for the defence of her title with two good wins, including at the Mol Lotto CrossCup meeting in Belgium on 3 November.
Heidi Martensson NOR (cross country): still only 18, she was the surprising junior women’ winner at the Nordic Cross Country Championships in the Icelandic capital Reykjavik on 9 November, beating several better known names to win over 4.5km in 15:07.
Kate Avery GBR (cross country): finished third against a strong international field in cold and very muddy conditions at the prestigious American collegiate (NCAA) cross country championships in Terre Haute on 23 November.
Sifan Hassan NED (cross country): still only 20, she was won the women 8.1km race in 27:09 at the Warandeloop event in Tilburg, a European Athletics Cross Country Permit meeting, on 24 November. She crossed the line 20 seconds ahead of her nearest rival.
Yelena Sedova RUS (distance running): had three good wins in French international races, firstly on the roads at the St Pol-Morlaix Half Marathon and then twice at cross country in successive weeks, at the Cross International Val de Marne and then Cross des Myriades.
Zsofia Erdelyi HUN (road running): won the Dubai Women’s 10km on 8 November in 33:16, winning the high profile international race by 28 seconds, and later in the month took the Hungarian cross country title in convincing fashion.