The Paris 2024 Olympics Games which kicked off on Friday, July 26, will be another avenue for African athletes and competitors to showcase their talents and break a barrier of winning 50 medals in an Olympic Games for the first time.

With 329 events in 32 sports and medals spread across the events, the African continent has plenty of opportunities to get on the podium to pick up medals.

However, there are standout athletes from different African countries who have greater chances of picking up medals at the Olympics at the end of the tournament and make their countries proud.

Africanewswatch.com brings you a list of seven of such athletes who stand on a pedestal of making history in this year’s Olympic Games.

Tobi Amusan (Nigeria, Athletics)

Tobiloba Amusan, the current world record holder in the 100m hurdles, will be leading Nigeria’s charge in the track event following her sterling performances in the last two years.

Amusan has been one of the most outstanding athletes in the world leading up to Paris and much is also expected of her at the Games.

Amusan stands a good chance of adding to the three Olympic gold medals Nigeria has won since the country’s first participation in the games in 1964.

Amusan’s journey from the tracks of Nigeria to the global stage has been nothing short of extraordinary as she has developed into one of the best in the world.

After winning gold in the 100m hurdles at the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, she has set her sights on adding an Olympic gold to her impressive resume.

The 26-year-old athlete has spent countless hours training, refining her technique, and building her strength and according to her coach who has worked with her since her breakthrough season, has achieved a remarkable improvement in Amusan’s speed and agility.

“With each passing month, her performances at international meets have only reinforced her status as a leading contender,” the coach said in a recent interview.

One of Amusan’s key advantages is her consistency. She has dominated the 100m hurdles circuit with remarkable regularity, a testament to her disciplined training regimen and mental toughness.

Her ability to perform under pressure was demonstrated during the World Championships, where she shattered records and outpaced her rivals in spectacular fashion and tie Paris 2024 Olympics is poised to be a grand stage for her and she is not shying away from the challenge with her recent performances in pre-Olympic meets putting her peak form.

Faith Kipyegon (Kenya, Athletics)

Kenyan queen of tracks as Faith Kipyegon is fondly called, currently has two world titles and four world records set in the past 13 months, and is in sparkling form heading to Paris.

The 30-year-old is aiming to secure her third successive Olympic gold in the women’s 1500m, a feat no African athlete has ever achieved in the same event three times in a row.

Kipyegon also lowered her 1500m world record time at the Diamond League meeting in the French capital earlier this month and will also be competing in the 5,000m at the Games

After winning both titles at the World Championships last year, the Kenyan queen is more poised to repeat the feat at the Olympics and cement her position as the queen of the track.

Letsile Tebogo (Botswana, Athletics)

Letsile Tebogo became the first African man to claim a 100m podium finish at the World Athletics Championships last year and is taking a magnificent form into the Olympics.

Tebogo is also the first man from Botswana to break the 10-second barrier over 100m. He announced himself on the senior stage last year when he picked up two medals at the World Championships.

He took silver in the 100m and bronze over 200m, becoming the first African man to win a world medal over the shorter distance.

Tebogo could become the first African man to win a 100m or 200m medal at the Games since Frankie Fredericks in 1996, but he will have to be at his very best to go a step further and emerge from a competitive field to win his country’s first ever Olympic gold.

Biniam Girmay (Eritrea, Cycling)

Biniam Girmay became the first black cyclist to win three consecutive races at the Tour de France and is heading to the Olympics in such great form that it will be out of place not to see him on the podium.

Girmay is revered by Eritreans and fans from his home country who are often there to support him at his races in Europe.

Fresh from a successful Tour de France where he made history as the first black African to win a stage at the world’s most famous bike race and then topping the points classification, the 24-year-old also finished in the top two in cycling’s time trial or road race and should achieve the East African country’s best ever result at the Olympics, surpassing an athletics bronze gained in 2004.

The individual time trial looks to be Girmay’s best chance of a medal, along a flat 32.4km-long route which starts on the Esplanade des Invalides and finishes on the Pont Alexandre III.

Blessing Oborududu (Nigeria, Freestyle Wrestling)

Oborududu has already stamped her name in wrestling in Nigeria and Africa, with 14 continental titles and four Commonwealth medals and was Nigeria’s best performer at Tokyo 2020 where she won silver in the 68kg category.

The 35-year-old Oborududu returns in the same weight class for what could be her final Olympics and is seeded sixth on the back of the rankings points she has picked up since last year’s World Championships.

Having made her senior debut in 2009, Oborududu is poised to go out in a blaze of glory by topping the podium and delivering a fourth Olympic gold medal for the West African nation.

Hugues Fabrice Zango (Burkina Faso, Athletics)

Triple jumper Hugues Fabrice Zango won gold in the World Championships in Budapest last year with a leap of 17.64 metres and is banking on his fine form since then as he heads into the Olympics.

The 31-year-old also delivered Burkina Faso’s first ever Olympic medal when he took bronze in the men’s triple jump in Tokyo 2020 and may well improve on the feat.

Zango was greeted by cheering crowds on his return to Ouagadougou, and became the first sportsman to have the country’s highest honorary distinction – Officer of the Order of the Stallion – bestowed upon him for his achievements.

A qualified doctor in electrical engineering, Zango says he aims to be a “symbol of hope” to others in his homeland with a target of registering more history for Burkina Faso in Paris.

Fatima Zahra El Mamouny (Morocco, Breaking)

Fatima Zahra El Mamouny became Africa’s women’s breaking champion in May last year and is hoping to take that feat into the Olympics.

Better known as B-Girl El Mamouny, the Moroccan made history by becoming the first ever qualifier for the Olympic breaking competition, a sport that has been introduced for Paris 2024 as the International Olympic Committee looks to appeal to a younger generation.

The 24-year-old got into breaking on the streets of Rabat, although at first her parents were not supportive of her newfound passion but according to her, she not only has the support of her parents now but that of the people of the country who are backing her to go ahead and make history.

In the first ever breaking contest, dancers will compete in a series of one-on one battles, taking it in turns to show their moves and receiving marks for technique, variety, execution, musicality and originality and B-Girl is poised to stake a claim for a podium finish.