Oumi Janta
Senegalese-German roller skater
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Oumi Janta (c. 1991[1]) is a German-Senegalese jam skater and influencer.
Janta was born in Thiès, Senegal and moved to Germany with her parents as an infant.[1][2] She grew up in Steglitz, before moving to Neukölln with her family.[2] As a child, Janta was a fan of figure skating. After studying industrial design at the University of Applied Sciences in Berlin, she initially worked as an eyewear designer.[3][4] Taking up roller skating to escape ennui in her work, she became part of a community based at Tempelhofer Feld in Berlin.[2][5] Janta was inspired by Surya Bonaly.[3][6]
In 2020, an Instagram video of Janta went viral and was eventually viewed by more than 3 million people.[7] Janta subsequently left her office job to work in skating and other creative areas full-time, founding a Jam Skate Club in Berlin and teaching roller skating to others.[3][5][8] She also works as a model.[9] Janta has been credited with being part of a 2020s revival of interest in roller skating and jam skating.[3][4][9] Interest in the revival has been particularly strong among black women.[10][11]
