The world record breaking run by Kenya's David Rudisha in the men's 800m final at the Olympic Games in London in 2012 was voted Athletics Moment of the Decade.

Rudisha's run was chosen ahead of compatriot Eliud Kipchoge's world record-breaking run in the Berlin Marathon in September last year.

The announcement was made on Tuesday by athletics’ governing body, World Athletics, which ran a series of polls culminating in a vote between two moments.

Rudisha, a double Olympic champion, dominated the race to win in a time of 1 minute 40.91 seconds. That would also be the first time in 36 years that a world record would be set in an 800m Olympic final.

Rudisha was also the previous record holder of 1 minute 41.09 seconds which he set at an international meeting in Berlin, Germany, two years earlier.

Kipchoge clocked 2 hours 1 minute 39 seconds to break the previous record of 2 hours 2 minute 57 seconds set by another Kenyan, Dennis Kimetto, in 2014 at the same course.

Rudisha has struggled with injuries and other personal problems off the track in the last two years, including the breakdown of his marriage and the death of his father, Daniel.

However, Rudisha said in an interview with the BBC in October that he is moving forward past his struggles. He is targeting to make a return to the track in 2020 ahead of the Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

Source: World Athletics, BBC