Africa, for all its history and beautiful sceneries, is also a continent that has produced world beaters in different sporting disciplines, ranging from football to athletics.
With the privilege to host its first Olympic event, the Youth Olympic Games, Pulse Sports looks at some of the stars from the continent that have blazed a trail down the years. These are sportsmen who defied the odds and became the best ever to represent their countries, both at present and in the past.
George Weah, Liberia (football) — One of his generation’s finest footballers, the Liberian was not just a prolific scorer but was also admired for his beautiful goals. left his hometown of Monrovia to join Monaco, where he became one of the best strikers in the French League.
He won the Ballon d’Or in 1995, becoming the first African and non-European player by nationality to win the coveted award. He achieved this feat after he starred for both PSG and . He also won the FIFA World Player of the Year in 1995 and was thrice named African footballer of the Year. Weah boasts stints with heavyweights Chelsea, Manchester City and as well as a spell with France’s Olympic Marseille.
Samuel Eto’o, Cameroon (football) — whose dominance has shaped world and African football, is currently Cameroon’s football federation president. Eto’o won gold at the, the African nation’s first Olympic title. He won the Africa Cup of Nations twice (2000, 2002) and was part of the Cameroon team that played in four World Cups and six AFCON tournaments.
Samuel Eto'o has been banned from attending Cameroon matches over misconduct which will rule him out of the doble header between the Indomitable Lions and Harambee Stars.
He remains AFCON all-time top scorer with 18 goals and Cameroon’s most capped footballer having made 118 appearances for the country. At club level, he won two Champions League trophies with (Barcelona, Inter Milan), scoring in each of the finals.
Abebe Bikila, Ethiopia (athletics) — Bikila left an indelible imprint on African athletics after he became the first Black African man to win an Olympic gold medal. He broke the world record at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome before cementing his legacy at the Tokyo 1964 Games. Bikila also won a remarkable 12 out of 13 marathons he raced between 1960-1966.
Eliud Kipchoge, Kenya (athletics) — , the only legend who is active, has established himself as one of the greatest marathoners in history because of his double marathon gold at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 in 2021. The two-time world marathon record holder has been a model of consistency, having not lost a race between 2014 and 2019.
Marathon legend Eliud Kipchoge turns 40 on Tuesday and as he celebrates his landmark birthday, Pulse Sports rolls back the years in a career filled with many highs and some all-time lows.
He cemented his glistening career in the Austrian capital, becoming the first man to break two hours for a marathon distance, shattering what had been considered an impossible barrier, in an unofficial race. The 40-year-old is a five-time Berlin marathon champion and boasts of four London marathon titles