Each year, African athletes impress with their performances, and with them starting to gain foothold particularly in the sprints, they continue to make history on the track. In our two-part series highlighting Africa’s Top 10 female sprinters of 2024, we kick things off with Part 1, featuring Numbers 10-6. Let’s dive in!
10. Miranda Coetzee
From her beginnings as a netball athlete to fully committing to Athletics, Miranda Coetzee has made remarkable strides. Representing South Africa, she has competed in the last two editions of the World Championships, firmly establishing herself as the nation’s top female 400m sprinter.
She entered the 2024 season as the reigning African Champion. With a few races under her belt, she eased into the season and successfully defended her title in Douala, beating a strong field to retain her crown.
As part of South Africa’s mixed 4x400m relay team at the Championships, Coetzee played a pivotal role, taking the team from fourth place to a stunning GOLD finish on anchor. They edged out African Record holders Nigeria, setting a new National Record of 3:13.12 in the process.
She then capped off her season by making her Olympic debut in Paris, where she set a new Personal Best (PB) of 50.66s before bowing out in the semifinal round.
9. Destiny Smith-Barnett
Destiny Smith-Barnett has been a regular presence on the U.S. sprinting circuit for many years, showcasing strong performances throughout her career, one of which earned her the Bronze medal at the 2023 U.S. Indoor Championships.
At the start of the 2024 season, Smith-Barnett made a significant transition, becoming one of four American female athletes to switch allegiance to Liberia. She quickly made her mark, earning a Silver medal as part of the women’s 4x100m relay team during her first international outing at the African Games in Ghana.
At the Last Chance Sprint Series in California in June, she made history by setting a new Liberian National Record of 10.99s in the 100m, becoming the first woman from the country to break the 11-second barrier.
She continued her momentum at the African Championships in Douala where she made her individual debut for Liberia, making the final of the women’s 100m and narrowly missing out on a podium finish.
However, as a member of Liberia’s women’s 4x100m relay team, she secured a Bronze medal and also reached the final of the 200m. She capped off an impressive season by making her Olympic debut in Paris, competing in the 100m.
8. Maboundou Koné
Maboundou Koné emerged in 2023 as one of Africa’s most promising sprinters from the Ivory Coast. In her first year rubbing shoulders with the best in the world, she was part of the Ivorian women’s 4x100m squad that set a new African Record of 41.90s, becoming the first African team to break 42 seconds.
Hence it was no surprise then that she was a part of the team that helped qualify Ivory Coast for the Olympic Games at the World Relay in The Bahamas.
Koné won Bronze in the women’s 100m at the African Championships in Douala and followed it up with a Silver medal over 200m. This was after lots of brilliant performances, one of which includes a second place finish over 200m on the Diamond League circuit.
At the Paris 2024 Olympics for her debut, she equalled her 100m PB, clocking 11.17s in the first round and just missed out on making the final of the 200m.
7. Maia McCoy
Maia McCoy was a force in her days at the University of Tennessee and for many years, competed as an American athlete. Widely known for her innovative fashion sense and choices on track, she made the switch to Liberia for international exposure.
This she got immediately, making an appearance at the African Games in Ghana and winning Silver for Liberia in the women’s 100m on her first try. She won another Silver in the 4x100m.
McCoy came close to setting a new 100m PB with her marginally windy 11.04s done at the LSU Invitational in April. She put together a string of really good races before her second outing for Liberia at the African Athletics Championships.
There, she ran a Season’s Best (SB) of 11.16s to win the Silver medal in the women’s 100m and also a Bronze as part of the 4x100m relay team.
6. Ella Onojuvwevwo
Ella Onojuvwevwo emerged in 2024 as Nigeria’s best female athlete in the 400m. She in fact became the fastest Nigerian woman in the 400m in over two decades when she ran a PB of 50.57s in Florida, making her the fastest since Nigerian and African Record holder Falilat Ogunkoya clocked 50.50s in 2001. That performance immediately took her up to 5th on the Nigerian all-time list.
Onojuvwevwo had a slow start to the season, missing out on qualifying for the NCAA Indoor Championships. She, however, began to peak outdoors, showing flashes of her potential at the World Relays in The Bahamas, where she ran a 50.0 split as part of Nigeria’s mixed 4x400m team, securing Olympic qualification.
Just days later, she returned to the U.S. for the SEC Championships, where she delivered an outstanding performance, clocking 50.57s to make the 400m final. With this feat, she became the first Nigerian woman to break the 51-second barrier in the 400m since 2015!
She surpassed the Olympic qualifying standard for the event pegged at 50.95s and took down the LSU School Record that stood for 21 years.
From there, Onojuvwevwo consistently ran sub-51 times, ultimately advancing to the NCAA Outdoor Championships, where she finished 6th overall. At the African Athletics Championships in Cameroon, she earned two medals: GOLD in the women’s 4x400m and Silver in the mixed 4x400m.
She made her Olympic debut in Paris, where she helped set a new National Record of 3:11.99 in the mixed 4x400m. Although she didn’t advance from her 400m heat initially, her standout performance came in the repechage round, where she won convincingly in 50.59s to qualify for the semifinals.
