Sportsבלסינג אפריפה
Blessing Afrifah
Blessing Afrifah is an Israeli sprinter who won the 200 metres at the 2022 World U20 Championships and at the 2023 and 2025 European U23 Championships.
born 2003World junior sprint titleEuropean under-age sprint titlesRepresenting Israel at the Paris OlympicsIsraeli sprint championship titles
- Born
- 26 October 2003, Tel Aviv
- Occupation
- sprinter, athletics competitor
Blessing Afrifah was born in 2003 in Tel Aviv
Afrifah was born in Tel Aviv on 26 October 2003 and later moved with his family to Ramat Gan. His parents came to Israel from Kumasi, Ghana, and are of Akan ethnicity. His younger sister Mercy is also a sprinter.
He studied at Ohel Shem high school in Ramat Gan. He played soccer as a child and turned to athletics at age 11. At 14 he began training with coach Igor Balon at Maccabi Tel Aviv.
He received Israeli citizenship in 2020 after a personal and public struggle. Starting in 2022 he served in the IDF in a program for athletes.
He won Israeli titles in the 100 m and 200 m from 2020. In 2022 he won the 200 m at the World U20 Championships in Cali in 19.954 seconds, becoming the first Israeli to run the event under 20 seconds. He then won the 200 m at the European U23 Championships in 2023 and 2025.
At the 2024 Paris Olympics he ran the men's 200 m and finished 34th, without reaching the semifinals.
Blessing Afrifah's life in 8 milestones
- 2003
Born in Tel Aviv.
- 2020
Received Israeli citizenship.
- 2020
Won his first Israeli titles in the 100 m and 200 m.
- 2022
Won the 200 m at the World U20 Championships.
- 2022
Began his service in the IDF.
- 2023
Won the 200 m at the European U23 Championships.
- 2024
Ran for Israel at the Paris Olympics.
- 2025
Won the European U23 200 m title again.
Blessing Afrifah served in the military
He served in the IDF from 2022 on a base in Rehovot, in a program for athletes that allows flexible service.
These 6 people share a field, a unit or a party with Blessing Afrifah
- Constantin Popaborn 1971Center for Maccabi Tel AvivSports
Diana Vaismanborn 1998Israeli 100 metres recordSports
Gashau Ayaleborn 19962022 European marathon bronze medalSports
Hanna Knyazyeva-Minenkoborn 19892015 World Championships triple jump silverSports- Lonah Chemtai Salpeterborn 19882018 European 10,000 metres titleSports
Aleksandr Averbukhborn 1974European pole vault titlesSports
Based on English Wikipedia, Blessing Afrifah and Hebrew Wikipedia, בלסינג אפריפה, under CC BY-SA 4.0. The facts are Wikidata's.
Photograph: Sandro Halank, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0