Abebe Bikila Abebe Bikila Abebe Bikila (; August 7, 1932 – October 25, 1973) was an Ethiopian marathon runner. A double Olympic marathon champion, he won the first at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome while running barefoot, setting a world record. He is Africa's first world record breaking athlete in any sport and the first sub-Saharan African Olympic gold medallist. At the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Abebe became the first athlete to successfully defend an Olympic marathon title, breaking his own world record in the process. He was a member of the Ethiopian Imperial Guard, an elite infantry division that
Chioma Ajunwa Chioma Ajunwa Chioma Ajunwa-Opara, MON (born 25 December 1970) – also known as Chioma Ajunwa – is a Nigerian former athlete who specialised in the long jump. After various setbacks in her career she achieved fame when she became the first athlete in her country to win an Olympic gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, and to date remains Nigeria's only individual Olympic gold medalist. Chioma Ajunwa is the first black African woman to win an Olympic gold medal in a field event. Ajunwa is also an officer with the Nigerian Police Force. Born into what she