Blessing Afrifah
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name = Blessing Afrifah
| full_name = Blessing Akwasi Afrifah
| native_name = בלסינג אקווסי אפריפה
| native_name_lang = he
| image = 2022-08-19 European Championships 2022 – Men's 200 Metres by Sandro Halank–008.jpg
| imagesize = 260px
| caption = Afrifah in 2022
| headercolor =
| nickname =
| birth_date = Tel Aviv, Israel
| death_date =
| death_place =
| height = 5' 11"
| weight = 165 lbs
| country = Israel
| sport = Athletics
| event = Sprints
| club = Maccabi Tel AvivCite error: A <ref>
tag is missing the closing </ref>
(see the help page). His parents are of Akan ethnicity, from Kumasi, Ghana, and moved to Israel a decade before he was born.[1][2][3][4][5] His father and his mother initially came to Israel separately as tourists in the mid-1990s.[6] They remained -- with his father working in the consular division of Ghana’s embassy, and his mother working as a cleaning lady.[4][6] Grateful to Israel they pledged that they would have a son named Blessing and a daughter named Mercy.[6] His younger sister Mercy is also a sprinter.[6]
As a child and teenager, Afrifah studied at Ohel Shem high school in Ramat Gan, Israel. He briefly played soccer, then turned to athletics at the age of 11.[7] He speaks fluent Hebrew and English.[6] He is 5 ft 11 in (180 cm), and weighs 165 pounds (75 kg).[6]
Running career
Early years; Israeli championships
At the age of 14, Afrifah began working with national coach Igor Balon.[5] His club is Maccabi Tel Aviv.[8]
Afrifah won the Israeli Championship in the 100m in 2020-24, with his best time being a 10.23 in 2023, and won the Israeli Championship in the 200m in 2020-24, with his best time being a 20.63 in 2023 in Jerusalem.[6]
2022; World U20 Champion
At the 2022 World Athletics U20 Championships in Cali, Colombia, at 18 years of age Afrifah won the 200 m in a photo finish with a championship record time of 19.954, 0.006 seconds ahead of Botswanan Letsile Tebogo.[9][10] Afrifah, who then draped the Israeli flag across his body, was the first Israeli to run the 200 metres race in under 20 seconds.[11][12] In recorded competitions, only two humans under age 20 had run a faster 200 meters, one being Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, who later won the event three times in the Olympics and four times in the world championships.[13]
2023–present; European U23 Champion
Next year, at the 2023 European Athletics U23 Championships in Espoo, Finland, Afrifah won the 200 m with a time of 20.67, just 0.01 second ahead of Dutch Raphael Bouju.[14]
His personal best at the 100m is 10.20 in 2023 and 2024, and at the 200 m is 19.95 in 2022.[6] His highest European ranking in the 200m was 4th.[15]
Afrifah said: "“I feel I’m standing for a community. Israel is a country that [some] countries hate, so it’s an honor to represent them. I want to prove [anti-Israel slander] is not true and Israel is different, and I’m proving it through sports."[16]
2024 Paris Olympics
Afrifah will represent Israel at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris in the men's 200 metres at the Stade de France between 5 and 8 August 2024.[17][18]
Personal life
In 2010, Afrifah was granted permanent residence status, along with his sister and parents, following a government decision to not deport children of foreign workers born in Israel.[19] At the age of 16, he was granted Israeli citizenship after he appealed to Israel's Minister Aryeh Deri.[20][21]
When asked about his feelings upon receiving his Israeli identity document, Afrifah replied: "I’m an Israeli. I was born here, my friends are here and don’t know any other option. I’m no different from my friends, which are residents of Israel. I want to represent Israel and win medals." He was given full citizenship in 2020, and stated: "I can’t describe how excited I am; I couldn’t even eat due to my excitement. I have more confidence and motivation to win achievements for Israel."[22]
As an Israeli citizen conscripted by law upon reaching 18 years of age, Afrifah was drafted to the Israel Defense Forces in 2022 and served at an army base in Rehovot in a more convenient and shorter service that is limited to elite sportspeople and artists.[22][6]
Career statistics
Figures from World Athletics profile.[6]
Personal bests
Surface | Distance | Time (s) | W (m/s) | Date | Location | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Outdoor | 60 metres | 6.88 | +0.7 | 21 January 2021 | Tel Aviv, Israel | |
100 metres | 10.20 | +1.7 | 21 May 2023 | Tel Aviv, Israel | =NR | |
150 metres | 15.57 | +0.6 | 27 April 2023 | Tel Aviv, Israel | ||
200 metres | 19.96 | −1.0 | 4 August 2022 | Cali, Colombia | AU20R NR NU20R | |
300 metres | 33.26 | 5 February 2022 | Tel Aviv, Israel | |||
4 × 100 metres relay | 39.66 | — | 21 June 2023 | Chorzów, Poland | ||
Indoor | 60 metres | 6.92 | — | 12 February 2022 | Belgrade, Serbia | |
200 metres | 20.95 | — | 11 February 2023 | Metz, France | NR |
International championships
Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Time | Wind (m/s) | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2021 | Balkan Championships | Smederevo, Serbia | 5th (F) | 200 metres | 21.28 | +0.7 | |
3rd | 4 x 100 metres relay | 40.12 | — | SB | |||
European U20 Championships | Tallinn, Estonia | 4th (F) | 200 metres | 21.01 | +0.7 | ||
7th (F) | 4 x 100 metres relay | 41.18 | — | ||||
World U20 Championships | Nairobi, Kenya | 7th (F) | 200 metres | 21.03 | +0.5 | ||
2022 | Balkan U20 Indoor Championships | Belgrade, Serbia | 7th (F) | 60 metres | 6.92i | — | PB |
Balkan Championships | Craiova, Romania | 1st | 200 metres | 20.98 | −1.9 | ||
5th (F) | 4 x 100 metres relay | 40.11 | — | ||||
World U20 Championships | Cali, Colombia | 1st | 200 metres | 19.96 [.954] | −1.0 | AU20R CR NR NU20R PB | |
European Championships | Munich, Germany | 7th (F) | 200 metres | 20.69 | −0.3 | ||
2023 | European Team Championships | Chorzów, Poland | DQ | 100 metres | — | — | — |
2nd | 4 x 100 metres relay | 39.66 | — | PB | |||
European U23 Championships | Espoo, Finland | 1st | 200 metres | 20.67 | −1.1 | ||
World Championships | Budapest, Hungary | 33rd (h) | 200 m | 20.73 | −1.4 | ||
2024 | European Championships | Rome, Italy | 7th | 200 m | 20.97 | +0.8 |
200 m progression
Year | Time | Location | Date | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
2019 | 21.67 | Tel Aviv, Israel | 25 July | |
2020 | 21.17 | Tel Aviv, Israel | 28 July | |
2021 | 20.94 | Tallinn, Estonia | 16 July | |
2022 | 19.96 | Cali, Colombia | 4 August | AU20R CR NR NU20R |
2023 | 20.42 | La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland | 2 July |
See also
- List of Israeli records in athletics
- List of European under-20 records in athletics
- Sports in Israel
References
- ^ Hillel Kuttler (December 5, 2022). "Blessing Afrifa; Israel’s Usain Bolt takes aim at the 2024 Olympics in Paris," Tablet.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
IAA
was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Blessing Akwasi AFRIFAH | Athlete profile". European Athletic Association. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
- ^ a b Rakovsky, Ido (28 July 2022). "הוא שובר שוב ושוב את שיאי ישראל, אך עדיין חולם על אזרחות למשפחתו" [He repeatedly breaks Israel's records, but still dreams of citizenship for his family]. Haaretz (in Hebrew). Retrieved 16 July 2023.
- ^ a b Halickman, Joshua (12 August 2022). "Afrifah a true blessing for Israeli sprinting". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Cite error: The named reference
world
was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Horovitz, Michael (5 August 2022). "Israel's Blessing Afrifah wins gold in 200m dash at under-20 world championship". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Israel's Blessing Afrifah wins gold in the 200-meter dash at the U-20 world championships". Aurora. 5 August 2022.
- ^ Mulvenney, Nick (5 August 2022). "Israeli Afrifa stuns Tebogo to win 200m at world juniors". Reuters. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
- ^ [2]
- ^ "Israeli runner Blessing Afrifah wins gold at World U20 Championships; The 18-year-old is the first Israeli in history to finish the race in under 20 seconds". I24NEWS. 5 August 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
- ^ [3]
- ^ "Alasaari adds to Finland's title haul with surprise pole vault victory in Espoo 2023". European Athletic Association. 16 July 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
- ^ [4]
- ^ [5]
- ^ "Israel's delegation to the 2024 Paris Olympic Games". Wingate Institute (in Hebrew). 25 June 2024. Archived from the original on 26 June 2024. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
- ^ "Road to Paris 24". World Athletics.
- ^ Joshua Halickman (12 August 2022). "Afrifah a true blessing for Israeli sprinting; Israeli sprinter Bessing Afrifah captured the gold medal in the 200-meter dash at the Under-20 World Athletic Championships". The Jerusalem Post.
- ^ Porat, Avinoam (12 February 2020). "Teenage runner faces hurdle to Israeli citizenship". Ynet. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
- ^ "Afrifah a true blessing for Israeli sprinting". 12 August 2022.
- ^ a b Porat, Avinoam (30 August 2022). "Israeli gold medalist sprinter gets drafted to IDF". Ynet. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
External links
- Blessing Afrifah at World Athletics
- Blessing Afrifah at European Athletics
- Blessing Afrifah at The-Sports.org
- Blessing Afrifah on Instagram
- 2003 births
- Living people
- 21st-century Israeli military personnel
- 21st-century Israeli sportsmen
- Athletes (track and field) at the 2023 European Games
- European Games competitors for Israel
- Israeli male sprinters
- Israeli people of Ghanaian descent
- Sportspeople from Ramat Gan
- Sportspeople from Tel Aviv
- World Athletics U20 Championships winners