The Most Famous

ATHLETES from South Sudan

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This page contains a list of the greatest South Sudanese Athletes. The pantheon dataset contains 6,025 Athletes, 2 of which were born in South Sudan. This makes South Sudan the birth place of the 113th most number of Athletes behind Cyprus, and Grenada.

Top 9

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

Photo of Guor Marial

1. Guor Marial (b. 1984)

With an HPI of 29.07, Guor Marial is the most famous South Sudanese Athlete.  His biography has been translated into 20 different languages on wikipedia.

Guor Mading Maker (born 15 April 1984), also known as Guor Marial, is a South Sudanese Olympic track and field athlete. He is a Dinka tribesman. Maker competed in the men's marathon at the 2012 Summer Olympics. Due to the civil war that saw South Sudan split from Sudan, he has refused to compete under the flag of the latter, stating, "It would be betraying my people". He was one of four athletes competing in the 2012 Summer Olympics under the Olympic flag rather than that of an individual country. Maker competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics for South Sudan, the country's first appearance at an Olympic Games. A film has been made of his life called Runner.

Photo of Lopez Lomong

2. Lopez Lomong (b. 1985)

With an HPI of 22.46, Lopez Lomong is the 2nd most famous South Sudanese Athlete.  His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Lopez Lomong (born January 5, 1985) is a South Sudanese-born American track and field athlete. Lomong, one of the Lost Boys of Sudan, came to the United States at the age of 16 and became a U.S. citizen in 2007. Lomong qualified for the 2008 Summer Olympics in the 1500 meters at the United States Olympic track and field trials in Eugene, Oregon. He was the flag bearer for the United States during the 2008 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony. He is currently a member of Team Darfur, a group of athletes urging China to exert pressure on the Sudanese government to address the War in Darfur. Lomong's autobiography, Running for My Life, was published in 2012, co-written with Mark Tabb.

Photo of Rose Lokonyen

3. Rose Lokonyen (b. 1995)

With an HPI of 21.79, Rose Lokonyen is the 3rd most famous South Sudanese Athlete.  Her biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Rose Nathike Lokonyen (born 24 February 1995) is a track and field athlete from South Sudan, but who later lived and trained in Kenya.

Photo of Abraham Guem

4. Abraham Guem (b. 1999)

With an HPI of 0.00, Abraham Guem is the 4th most famous South Sudanese Athlete.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Abraham Majok Matet Guem (born 29 April 1999) is a middle-distance runner from South Sudan who specializes in the 1500 metres. In April 2021, he set a new personal best and national record for the 1500 metres of 3:42.99 at the Komazawa Olympic Park Stadium in Tokyo. He was selected for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and was given the honour of being a flag bearer for his nation in the opening ceremony. He competed in the 800 metres at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris in August 2024, running a personal best time.

Photo of Paulo Amotun Lokoro

5. Paulo Amotun Lokoro (b. 1992)

With an HPI of 0.00, Paulo Amotun Lokoro is the 5th most famous South Sudanese Athlete.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Paulo Amotun Lokoro (born 1 January 1992) is a South Sudanese track and field athlete now living in Kenya. He specializes in the 1500 metres event. Lokoro was selected as one of the ten members of the Refugee Olympic Team for the 2016 Summer Olympics and the 2020 Summer Olympics. Originally a cattle farmer in southern Sudan, he fled his home to Kenya in 2006 to escape a war.

Photo of Matthew Rossiter

6. Matthew Rossiter (b. 1989)

With an HPI of 0.00, Matthew Rossiter is the 6th most famous South Sudanese Athlete.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Matthew Rossiter (born 25 September 1989) is a British international rower. He is an Olympian and has won medals at World Rowing Championships.

Photo of James Chiengjiek

7. James Chiengjiek (b. 1992)

With an HPI of 0.00, James Chiengjiek is the 7th most famous South Sudanese Athlete.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

James Nyang Chiengjiek (born March 2, 1992) is a runner originally from South Sudan, but now living and training in Kenya. He was selected by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to compete for the Refugee Olympic Team (ROT) at the 2016 Summer Olympics. He placed last in his 400 m heat. He was also qualified to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics ROT, and placed last in his 800 m heat after tripping due to a fellow competitor's involuntary touch.

Photo of Amur Al-Khanjari

8. Amur Al-Khanjari (b. 2000)

With an HPI of 0.00, Amur Al-Khanjari is the 8th most famous South Sudanese Athlete.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Amur Salim Al-Khanjari (born 16 October 2000) is an Omani weightlifter. He represented Oman at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan.

Photo of Liu Shiying

9. Liu Shiying (b. )

With an HPI of 0.00, Liu Shiying is the 9th most famous South Sudanese Athlete.  Their biography has been translated into different languages.

Liu Shiying is the name of: Liu Shiying (architect) (柳士英; 1893–1973), Chinese architect Liu Shiying (athlete) (刘诗颖; born 1993), Chinese athlete

People

Pantheon has 9 people classified as South Sudanese athletes born between 1984 and 2000. Of these 9, 9 (100.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living South Sudanese athletes include Guor Marial, Lopez Lomong, and Rose Lokonyen. As of April 2024, 7 new South Sudanese athletes have been added to Pantheon including Rose Lokonyen, Abraham Guem, and Paulo Amotun Lokoro.

Living South Sudanese Athletes

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Newly Added South Sudanese Athletes (2024)

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