ATHLETES from Ghana

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Ghanaian Athletes of all time. This list of famous Ghanaian Athletes is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Ghanaian Athletes.

1. Ignisious Gaisah (b. 1983)

With an HPI of 30.66, Ignisious Gaisah is the most famous Ghanaian Athlete.  His biography has been translated into 19 different languages on wikipedia.

Ignisious Gaisah (born 20 July 1983) is a Ghanaian-born athlete competing in the long jump for the Netherlands.

2. Aziz Zakari (b. 1976)

With an HPI of 28.48, Aziz Zakari is the 2nd most famous Ghanaian Athlete.  His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Abdul Aziz Zakari (born September 2, 1976) is a Ghanaian athlete specializing in the 100 metres. He was born in Accra, Ghana. Participating in the 2000 Summer Olympics, he made it to the final of the 100 metres, but failed to finish after becoming injured at about the 35m mark. Also participating in the 2004 Summer Olympics, he achieved second place in his 100 metres heat, thus making it through to the second round. Heading into the second round, he was victorious in a tough sprint, before achieving qualification from his semi-final. This good form was not able to continue, as he failed to finish in the final, staged on August 22, renowned as possibly the fastest collective 100 metre race in history, where six of the seven finishing athletes completed the race in ten seconds or less. He finally, for the first time, achieved a sub-10 second run on June 14, 2005, in Athens when he ran 9.99 seconds in Asafa Powell's world record breaking race. The Ghanaian record currently belongs to Leonard Myles-Mills with 9.98 seconds. In July 2006, Zakari was reported to have failed a drugs test for the banned substance stanozolol. The test was conducted In-Competition on 29 April 2006 at the IAAF Grand Prix Meeting in Dakar. On 25 September 2006 the IAAF suspended him for two years. After his suspension Zakari participated at the 2008 Summer Olympics in which he ran the fourth time in his 100 metres heat, behind Richard Thompson, Martial Mbandjock and Simone Collio. His time of 10.34 was the third losing time after the 10.25 of Nobuharu Asahara, advancing him to the second round. There he improved his time to 10.24, but finished in fifth place of his heat, causing his elimination from the competition.

3. Margaret Simpson (b. 1981)

With an HPI of 21.94, Margaret Simpson is the 3rd most famous Ghanaian Athlete.  Her biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Margaret Simpson (born 31 December 1981 in Krapa) is a Ghanaian heptathlete. She won a bronze medal at the 2005 World Championships, setting several personal bests in the process. Her personal best is 6423 points, achieved in Götzis in May 2005.

4. Sulemanu Tetteh (b. 1992)

With an HPI of 0.00, Sulemanu Tetteh is the 4th most famous Ghanaian Athlete.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Sulemanu Tetteh (born 18 August 1992) is a Ghanaian boxer. He competed in the Men's light flyweight division in the boxing at the 2012 Summer Olympics, losing in the first round to Jantony Ortíz of Puerto Rico. Commenting on the bout, he said, "I have experienced something from a champion". Earlier in 2012, he won the gold medal in the light flyweight division at the ECOWAS games. He qualified to represent Ghana at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

5. Nadia Eke (b. 1993)

With an HPI of 0.00, Nadia Eke is the 5th most famous Ghanaian Athlete.  Her biography has been translated into different languages.

Nadia Eke (born 11 January 1993, Accra) is a Ghanaian triple jumper.

6. Christian Amoah (b. 1999)

With an HPI of 0.00, Christian Amoah is the 6th most famous Ghanaian Athlete.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Christian Amoah (born 25 July 1999) is a Ghanaian weightlifter who currently competes in the 85 kg event. He competed in the Men's 77 kg at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Amoah represented Ghana in the Men's 85 kg at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He was the inaugural male Ghanaian to compete in weightlifting at the modern Olympics. He was also the youngest athlete to take part in weightlifting at the 2016 Summer Olympics. He represented Ghana at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

7. Varazdat Lalayan (b. 1999)

With an HPI of 0.00, Varazdat Lalayan is the 7th most famous Ghanaian Athlete.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Varazdat Lalayan (born 1 May 1999,Gyumri, Armenia) is an Armenian weightlifter. He is a three-time medalist at the World Weightlifting Championships and a four-time medalist, including gold, at the European Weightlifting Championships.

8. Abeiku Jackson (b. 2000)

With an HPI of 0.00, Abeiku Jackson is the 8th most famous Ghanaian Athlete.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Abeiku Gyekye Jackson (also spelled Abeku, born 12 April 2000 in Accra) is a Ghanaian swimmer specialising in the 50 and 100 metre butterfly. He competed in the 100m freestyle, 50m butterfly, and 100m butterfly at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. He holds Ghanaian national records in 13 disciplines, including freestyle, butterfly, breaststroke and backstroke events over distances from 50 to 400 metres. His older brother Kwesi Abbiw Jackson and younger brother Kow Asafua Jackson are also swimmers. Jackson represented Ghana in the 50 metre freestyle at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Jackson and female swimmer Kaya Forson, who competed in the 200 metre freestyle in Rio, became the first Ghanaians ever to compete in swimming at the Olympic Games. He competed in the men's 100 metre butterfly event at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

9. Lisa-Marie Kwayie (b. 1996)

With an HPI of 0.00, Lisa-Marie Kwayie is the 9th most famous Ghanaian Athlete.  Her biography has been translated into different languages.

Lisa Marie Kwayie (born 27 October 1996) is a German sprinter. She won a bronze medal in the 4 × 100 metres relay at the 2018 European Championships.

10. Bismark Boateng (b. 1992)

With an HPI of 0.00, Bismark Boateng is the 10th most famous Ghanaian Athlete.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Bismark Boateng (born March 15, 1992) is a Canadian track and field athlete specializing in the sprint events. Born in Ghana, Boateng moved to Canada when he was 14 for better opportunities and lives in Toronto, Ontario.