| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Nationality | Zambian | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 9 December 2002 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Zambia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Track and field | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event | Sprints | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal bests | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Muzala Samukonga (born 9 December 2002) [1] 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. [2]
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. [3]
In March 2022, he recorded a new personal best in the event of 45.65 s in Botswana. [4] 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. [5] [6] His victory ended a ten-year reign of athletes from Botswana in the event, namely Isaac Makwala and Baboloki Thebe. [6] [7] It also qualified him for the 2022 World Athletics Championships the following month in Eugene, Oregon. [8]
All information taken from World Athletics profile. [1]
| Event | Time (m:)s | Wind (m/s) | Place | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 200 metres | 20.48 | +0.3 | Lusaka, Zambia | 22 May 2022 | |
| 400 metres | 43.91 | — | Gaborone, Botswana | 29 April 2023 | NR |
| 4 × 400 m relay | 3:04.76 | — | Birmingham, United Kingdom | 7 August 2022 | NR |
| 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 |
The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is one lap around the track. Runners start in staggered positions and race in separate lanes for the entire course. In many countries, athletes previously competed in the 440-yard dash (402.336 m)—which is a quarter of a mile and was referred to as the 'quarter-mile'—instead of the 400 m (437.445 yards), though this distance is now obsolete.
Kerron Stephon Clement is a Trinidadian-born American track and field athlete who competes in the 400-meter hurdles and 400-meter sprint. He held the indoor world record in the 400-meter sprint, having broken Michael Johnson's mark in 2005.
Natalya Nikolayevna Antyukh is a Russian sprinter who specializes in the 400 metres and 400 metres hurdles. She won the bronze medal in the 400 metres and a silver for the 4 × 400 m relay at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.
Martyn Joseph Rooney is an English sprinter who specialises in the 400 metres event. He reached the 400 m final at the 2008 Summer Olympics and won bronze in the 4×400 metres relay. A mainstay on the anchor leg of the Great Britain and England 4 x 400 metre relay teams, at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics he won a silver medal with the Great Britain relay team, and bronze in the 2015 and 2017 World Championships.
David Gillick is an Irish international track and field athlete. He began his education in Our Lady's Boys School and attended St Benildus College secondary school in Kilmacud. He studied at Dublin Institute of Technology before moving to Loughborough University in the United Kingdom to train as a full-time athlete with coach Nick Dakin. Gillick specialises in the 400 metres and he won the European Indoor Championship in 2005 and 2007, as well as the Irish National Outdoor Championship in 2006 and 2007. He set the Irish Indoor record of 45.52 seconds in the 2007 final. The time also beat the Irish outdoor record of 45.58 and was within the Olympic 'A' qualifying standard for the 2008 Games. On 4 July 2009 he ran 44.77 seconds in a race in Madrid to set a new national record. He is also the 2009 Irish national 200 m champion.
Amantle Montsho is a female sprinter from Botswana who specializes in the 400 metres. She represented her country at the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics, reaching the final at the latter edition. She was the first woman to represent Botswana at the Olympics. She has also competed at the World Championships in Athletics and the IAAF World Indoor Championships, and is the former World Champion over the 400m, winning in a personal best time of 49.56 in Daegu.
Kirani James is a Grenadian professional sprinter who specializes in the 400 metres. He won the 400 m at the World Championships in 2011, and the 2012 London Olympics. In the 400 metres, James also won the silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics, and bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, thus becoming the first man to earn the full set of three medals in the centennial history of the event. He is Grenada's first and only Olympic medalist. He holds the Grenadian national record in both the 200 metres and 400 metres.
Karsten Warholm is a Norwegian sprinter who competes in the 400 metres and 400 m hurdles. He is the 2020 Tokyo Olympic champion, a three-time world champion and the world record holder in the latter event.
Wayde van Niekerk is a South African track and field sprinter who competes in the 200 and 400 metres. In the 400 metres, he is the current world and Olympic record holder, having set the record in the Olympic finals. He also holds the world-best time in the 300 metres.
Saviour Kombe is a Zambian track and field sprinter who specialises in the 400 metres. His personal best for the distance is 45.27 seconds. He is a joint holder of the Zambian record in the 4×100 metres relay and 4×400 metres relay.
Steven Gardiner is a Bahamian track and field sprinter competing in the 400 metres and 200 metres. He is the 2020 Olympic and 2019 world champion in the 400 m, and also won the silver medal at the 2017 World Championships in that event. His winning time of 43.48 s from the 2019 World Championships is the Bahamian record and makes him the sixth-fastest man in the history of the event. Gardiner also owns the Bahamian records in the outdoor 300 m and 200 m, with times of 31.83 s and 19.75 s respectively, and the world best in the indoor 300 m at 31.56 s.
Shericka Jackson is a Jamaican sprinter competing in the 100 m, 200 m, and 400 metres. In the 100 m, she’s the fifth fastest woman of all time, while in the 200 m, she’s the fastest woman alive and second fastest woman in history.
Laviai Nielsen is a British sprinter specialising in the 400 metres. She won several medals as a member of the Great Britain 4x400 metres relay teams, including silver at the 2017 World Championships in the women's 4 x 400 metres, and at the 2023 World Championships in the mixed 4 x 400 metres, and bronze in the women's 4 x 400 metres at the 2022 World Championships.
Emmanuel Kipkurui Korir is a Kenyan middle-distance runner. He is the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and 2022 World champion in the 800 metres. Korir won the silver medal in the event at the 2018 African Championships in Athletics.
Rhasidat Adeleke is an Irish sprinter. She won the 100 metres / 200 m double at the 2021 European Athletics Under-20 Championships.
Ricky Petrucciani is a Swiss sprinter specialising in the 400 metres. He won a gold medal at the 2021 European U23 Championships and a silver medal at the 2022 European Championships in the 400m category. He also reached the semifinals of the 2020 Olympics.
Alexander Doom is a Belgian sprinter specializing in the 400 metres. In 2024, he became the first male athlete to win the individual 400 metres and 4×400 metres relay at the same World Athletics Indoor Championships He has won several medals in international competitions with the Belgian 4 × 400 metres relay team and holds a personal best of 44.92 over the 400 metres.
Beatrice Masilingi is a Namibian sprinter. At the age of 18, she placed sixth in the 200 metres at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, having made the final along with fellow Namibian sprinter and eventual silver medallist Christine Mboma. Masilingi won silver medals in both the 100 metres and 200 m at the 2021 World Under-20 Championships.
Elija Godwin is an American athlete who specialises in the 400 metres.
Busang Collen Kebinatshipi is a track and field athlete from Botswana. In 2023, he became the African U20 champion in the 400 metres.
Commonwealth Games champions in men's 400 metres | |
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| 440 yards (1930–1966) |
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| 400 metres (1970–present) |
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