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.

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Joseph Fahnbulleh

Joseph Fahnbulleh at the 2022 World Championships (2022)
Personal information
Full name	Joseph Blowadeh Siafa Fahnbulleh[1]
Born	(2001-09-11) 11 September 2001 (age 22)
Home town	Hopkins, Minnesota, United States
Education	Hopkins High School
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Sport
Country	Liberia
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	100 meters, 200 meters
College team	Florida Gators
Achievements and titles
Personal bests	100 m: 9.98 +1.6 m/s (Gainesville 2023) 200 m: 19.83 +0.6 m/s (Eugene 2022)
Medal record Men's athletics Representing  Liberia African Games 2023 Accra 4x100 m relay

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Born in Hopkins, Minnesota, to Liberian parents, Fahnbulleh attended Hopkins High School.^[2] 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.^[3][4]

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.^[5]

After declaring for Liberia and being named in their team for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo,^[6] Fahnbulleh was given the honor of being the flag bearer for his nation in the opening ceremony.^[7] The journey to Tokyo for the Olympics was the first time Fahnbulleh had ever been outside of the United States.^[8]

He 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.^[9] He finished in fifth place in the final, again setting a new national record with a time of 19.98 seconds.^[10]

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.^[11][12][13]

Fahnbulleh placed fourth at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in the 200 meters running 19.84 seconds in the final.^[14]

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.^[15]

In March 2024, he was a bronze medalist in the 4x100m relay at the 2023 African Games.^[16]

In August 2022, Fahnbulleh announced he had signed a professional contract with global brand Asics.^[17]

• Information from World Athletics profile unless otherwise noted.^[18]