Joseph Fahnbulleh

Joseph Fahnbulleh (born 11 September 2001) is a Liberian-American sprinter. An Olympic finalist, Fahnbulleh is a double NCAA champion and finished fourth at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in the 200 meters race.

Early and personal life
Born in Hopkins, Minnesota, to Liberian parents, Fahnbulleh attended Hopkins High School. His mother was brought up in Liberia but had to flee to the United States to avoid the Liberian Civil War when she was twelve years-old.

Career
After being named National High School Coaches' Association boys athlete of the year in 2019 he was encouraged by Florida coach Mike Holloway to attend the University of Florida, and Fahnbulleh subsequently won the 200 m at the 2021 NCAA Outdoor National Championships with a personal best time of 19.91 seconds. He was also named National Senior Boys' Track and Field Athlete of the Year.

After declaring for the Liberian national team and being named to their roster for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Fahnbulleh was given the honor of being the flag bearer for his nation in the opening ceremony. His journey to Tokyo was the first time Fahnbulleh had ever been outside of the United States.

Fahnbulleh made it through to the final of the 2020 Olympics 200 meters race with a time of 19.99 seconds in his semi-final, setting a new Liberian national record. He finished in fifth place in the final, again setting a new national record with a time of 19.98 seconds.

On 10 June 2022, Fahnbulleh won both the 100 m and 200 m events at the 2022 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships with times of 10.00 (+0.6 m/s) and 19.83 (+0.6m/s) respectively, helping the Florida Gators to the 2022 NCAA men's team title.

Fahnbulleh placed fourth at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in the 200 meters running 19.84 seconds in the final.

Competing in the 200 meters at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest in 2023, he qualified from the semi finals for his third consecutive major 200 meters final.

In March 2024, he was a bronze medalist in the 4x100m relay at the 2023 African Games. He ran as part of the Liberian 4x100m relay team that qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics at the 2024 World Relays Championships in Nassau, Bahamas. In May 2024, he finished fourth in the 200 metres at the 2024 Prefontaine Classic.

Sponsorship
In August 2022, Fahnbulleh announced he had signed a professional contract with global brand Asics.

Statistics

 * Information from World Athletics profile unless otherwise noted.