Abdul-Rasheed Saminu
Ghanaian athlete (born 1997)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Abdul-Rasheed Saminu (born 6 October 1997) is a Ghanaian sprinter. He represented Ghana at the 2024 Olympic Games and 2025 World Athletics Championships.[1]
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Nationality | Ghanaian | |||||||||||||||||
| Born | 6 October 1997 Kukuo, Ghana | |||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | |||||||||||||||||
Event | Sprint | |||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||
| Personal bests | 60m: 6.57 (Birmingham, 2024) 100m: 9.84 (Jacksonville, 2025) NR 200m: 20.12 (Eugene, 2024) | |||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Early life
Saminu is from the village of Nanumba in the Northern part of Ghana where he was a keen football player before being encouraged towards athletics.[2] He attended the American universities Florida Memorial University and the University of South Florida after being recruited by USF head coach Erik Jenkins.[3]
Career
Saminu ran a wind-aided (+3.6 m/s) 9.95 seconds for the 100m at the South Florida Invitational in April 2024.[4]
Saminu won the gold in the 100m, 200m and 4 x 100m relay at the AAC Championships in May 2024 in San Antonio, United States. His efforts included a personal best time in the 100m of 10.03 seconds in a legal wind (-0.8) and ran a time of 20.34 seconds in the 200m.[5]
Saminu ran 10.02 seconds for the 100m at the 2024 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon. In the 200 metres on the same day he ran a personal best of 20.12 in the 200 metres.[6] Later that month, he was part of the Ghana 4x100m relay team that won gold at the African Championships in Douala, Cameroon.[7]
He competed in the 100 metres at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he reached the semi-finals.[8] He also competed in the men's 4x100m relay at the Games.[9]
In 2025, he set an early world lead with a time of 9.86 seconds for the 100 metres.[10] In September, he was a semi-finalist in the 100 metres at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo, Japan.[11] He also ran in the men's 4 x 100 metres relay at the championships as the Ghana team placed fourth.[12]
Sprinter Abdul-Rasheed Saminu was named Male Athlete of the Year at the 2025 Stampede of Champions Awards, recognising his outstanding performance in athletics.[13]
In May, he ran at the 2026 World Athletics Relays in the men's 4 × 100 metres relay in Gaborone, Botswana.[14] In June, he placed third in a wind-assisted 9.88 seconds for the 100 metres at the LA Grand Prix.[15] On 14 July, he placed second in 10.01 seconds for the 100 m at the István Gyulai Memorial, in Budapest.[16] He competed in the 100 metres at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, reaching the semi-finals.[17] He also ran in the men's 4 × 100 m relay.[18]
Career statistics
Figures from World Athletics profile.[19]
Personal bests
| Surface | Distance | Time (s) | W (m/s) | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outdoor | 60 metres | 6.53 | 15 March 2025 | Virginia Beach, United States | ||
| 100 metres | 9.84 | +1.5 | 19 July 2025 | Powder Springs, United States | =NR | |
| 200 metres | 20.12 | -0.1 | 7 June 2024 | Eugene, United States | ||
| 4 × 100 metres relay | 38.05 | N/a | 30 May 2025 | Jacksonville, United States | ||
| 4 × 200 metres relay | 1:21.06 | N/a | 25 April 2025 | Philadelphia, United States | ||
| 4 × 400 metres relay | 3:16.84 | N/a | 16 March 2024 | Tampa, USA |
International championships
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Time | Wind (m/s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | African U20 Athletics | Abidjan, Ivory Coast | 7th (F) | 100 m | 10.77 | +0.5 | [20] |
| 5th (SF) | 200m | 21.58 | -0.2 | [21] | |||
| 2022 | FASU games | Nairobi, Kenya | 2nd | 100 m | 10.31 | +0.5 | [22] |
| 2022 Commonwealth Games | Birmingham, United Kingdom | 25th (h) | 200 m | 21.32 | +0.2 | [23] | |
| 2024 | 2024 African Championships in Athletics | Douala, Cameroon | 4th (F) | 200 m | 20.67 | +0.1 | [24] |
| 1st | 4 x 100 m | 38.63 | [25] | ||||
| 2024 Summer Olympics | Paris, France | 16th (SF) | 100 m | 10.05 | +0.5 | [26] | |
| DQ | 4 × 100 m | N/a | [27] | ||||
| 2025 | World Athletics Championships | Tokyo, Japan | 12th (SF) | 100 m | 10.08 | +0.3 | [28] |
