Yelena Isinbayeva was named women's "Athlete of the Decade" by USA's Track and Field News.

European athletes featured strongly in the Track and Field News "Athlete Of The Decade" honours, with Russia's Pole Vault queen Yelena Isinbayeva taking the top spot in the women's category.

Isinbayeva won the 2004 and 2008 Olympic gold medals, the 2005 and 2007 World Championships titles, she is the reigning European champion and has notched up a phenomenal 27 world records, indoors and outdoors.

The US-based publication, arguably the most authoritative athletics publication in the world since it was founded in 1948, has published its 10-yearly men's rankings since 1960 and its women's rankings since 1970.

Isinbayeva maintains a European stranglehold at the top of the women's rankings, following in the footsteps of French sprinter Marie-Jose Perec, who got the vote for the 1990s and the East German pair of sprinter Marita Koch (1980s) and Javelin thrower Ruth Fuchs (1970s).

Sweden's Carolina Kluft was ranked in third place for her Heptathlon performances during the last decade.

Kluft, the European Heptathlon record holder, won the 2004 Olympic title in her best known event - although she has dedicated herself  to the Long Jump and Triple Jump in the last two years -  and also won three consecutive Heptathlon gold medals at the 2003, 2005 and 2007 World Championships.

She finished just ahead in the rankings of Russia's Tatyana Lebedeva, the reigning European Triple Jump champion and the 2004 Olympic champion, who has also had outstanding international success doubling up in the Long Jump.

For full details of the women's top 10, click here.

In the men's ranking, Lithuania Discus legend Virgilijus Alekna took second place behind Ethiopia's distance runner Kenenisa Bekele.

Alekna got recognition for his 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games gold medals, 2003 and 2005 World Championships title and he is also the reigning European champion.

He had a stunning streak of 37 consecutive wins between August 2005 until the 2007 World Championships. At 37 - he celebrates his 38th birthday on 13 February,  he is still a world class performer and won at the IAAF World Athletics Final as well as finishing fourth at last year's World Championships.

Three other European athletes made the Top 10 with Polish walker Robert Korzeniowski in fifth place, Norway's reigning Olympic, world and European Javelin champion Andreas Thorkildsen eighth, and the Czech Republic multi-events exponent Roman Sebrle ninth.

In contrast to the women, the only European man to get the Athlete Of The Decade accolade from Track And Field News was the Soviet Union's Viktor Saneyev, who originally hailed from Georgia, for his exploits in the Triple Jump during the 1970s.

For full details of the men's top 10, clink here.