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Muzala Samukonga

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Muzala Samukonga
Muzala Samukonga in 2024
Personal information
NationalityZambian
Born (2002-12-09) 9 December 2002 (age 21)
Lusaka, Zambia
Sport
CountryZambia
SportTrack and field
EventSprints
Achievements and titles
Personal bests
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  Zambia
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Paris 400 m
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 2022 Birmingham 400 m
African Games
Gold medal – first place 2023 Accra 4×400 m relay
Silver medal – second place 2023 Accra 400 m
African Championships
Gold medal – first place 2022 Saint Pierre 400 m
Silver medal – second place 2022 Saint Pierre 4×400 m relay
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Douala 4×400 m relay

Muzala Samukonga (born 9 December 2002)[2] is a Zambian track and field sprinter who specialises in the 400 metres. In 2022, at the age of 19, he won gold medals at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games and African Championships.[3] A flagbearer for Zambia at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Samukonga won the bronze medal in the 400 metres event.

Career

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Muzala Samukonga competed in the 400 metres at the 2021 World Under-20 Championships in Kenya, where he finished in fifth place after with a time of 45.89 s.[4]

In March 2022, he recorded a new personal best in the event of 45.65 s in Botswana.[5] On 10 June, Samukonga won the gold medal in the 400 m at the 2022 African Championships in Mauritius, upsetting Bayapo Ndori in the final with a time of 45.31 s.[6][7] His victory ended a ten-year reign of athletes from Botswana in the event, namely Isaac Makwala and Baboloki Thebe.[7][8] It also qualified him for the 2022 World Athletics Championships the following month in Eugene, Oregon.[9]

Achievements

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All information taken from World Athletics profile.[2]

Personal bests

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Event Time (m:)s Wind (m/s) Place Date Notes
200 metres 20.48 +0.3 Lusaka, Zambia 22 May 2022
400 metres 43.74 Paris, France 7 August 2024 NR
4 × 400 m relay 3:04.76 Birmingham, United Kingdom 7 August 2022 NR

International championships results

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Representing  Zambia
Year Competition Venue Position Event Time
2021 World U20 Championships Nairobi, Kenya 5th 400 m 45.89 PB
2022 African Championships Saint Pierre, Mauritius 1st 400 m 45.31
2nd 4 × 400 m relay 3:05.53
World Championships Eugene, OR, United States 9th (sf) 400 m 45.02 PB
Commonwealth Games Birmingham, United Kingdom 1st 400 m 44.66 NR
5th 4 × 400 m relay 3:04.76 NR
2024 African Games Accra, Ghana 2nd 400 m 45.37
1st 4 × 400 m relay 2:59.12
African Championships Douala, Cameroon 3rd 4 × 400 m relay 3:02.56
Olympic Games Paris, France 3rd 400 m 43.74
8th 4 × 400 m relay 3:02.76


In addition, as of August 2024, Samukonga holds the track record for Gaborone where he clocked 43.91 seconds in April 2023.

References

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  1. ^ "Olympic Track And Field Live Updates, Results: Aug. 6 - FloTrack". 2024-08-06. Archived from the original on 2024-08-06. Retrieved 2024-08-06.
  2. ^ a b "Muzala SAMUKONGA – Athlete Profile". World Athletics. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
  3. ^ "Matt Hudson-Smith misses out on gold as Muzala Samukonga stuns 400m favourite". The Independent. 7 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  4. ^ "Race Analysis - 400 Metres Men - Final" (PDF). World Athletics. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  5. ^ Chatuvela, Elizabeth (24 May 2022). "Samukonga sprints to new personal time". Zambia Daily Mail. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  6. ^ Wachira, Lynne (10 June 2022). "African Athletics Championships: Tobi Amusan and Ferdinand Omanyala strike gold again". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  7. ^ a b Demba, Varore (10 June 2022). "Championnat d'Afrique athlétisme-400m : A 19 ans, Muzala Samukonga met fin à 10 ans de règne botswanais". Sport News Africa (in French). Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  8. ^ Kaumba, Michael (11 June 2022). "Samukonga Is The New 400 Meters African Champion". ZNBC. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  9. ^ "Samukonga qualifies to World Athletics Championship to be held in Oregon USA next month, July 15-24, 2022". The Zambian Observer. 13 June 2022. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
[edit]
Olympic Games
Preceded by Flag bearer for  Zambia
Paris 2024
with
Margaret Tembo
Succeeded by
Incumbent