MEDALS AND METTLE: AFRICA’S HISTORY-MAKERS AT THE GAMES
ONE OF THE STORIES of the Olympics centered around the sensational rise of Namibian sprinter Christine Mboma.
The teenager cuts a shy figure off the track, but once she steps between the lines is explosive in her pace and has the potential to be a genuine superstar of global athletics for the next decade.
The 18-year-old’s remarkable run to 200 meters silver in Tokyo, and a subsequent gold medal in the Diamond League finals a few weeks later in Zurich, is all the more impressive after she was barred by World Athletics from competing in her favorite 800 metres event.
“I hope I can be a role model for a new generation of Namibian athletes.”
– Christine Mboma
Like South African Caster Semenya, Mboma has a naturally high level of testosterone that means she is prohibited from competing in distances ranging from 400 meters to
