Rose Amoanimaa Yeboah has etched her name in Ghana’s sporting history, becoming the nation’s first-ever athlete to reach the women’s high jump final at the World Athletics Championships. The 23-year-old sealed her place after soaring over 1.92 metres in Thursday’s qualification round in Tokyo.
Yeboah’s clearance did more than earn her a spot in the final, it rewrote the record books for Ghana. She is the first athlete from the country to reach an individual event final at the championships since 2005, when Ignatius Gaisah and Margaret Simpson won medals in Helsinki.
The former Kumasi Girls High School student delivered under immense pressure. Her first-time clearance of 1.92m placed her among the top 16 athletes to advance. She now stands alongside Olympic champion Yaroslava Mahuchikh, Australia’s Nicola Olyslagers and Eleanor Patterson, and Britain’s Morgan Lake in a stacked final.
For Yeboah, the achievement carries deep personal meaning. She endured disappointment at the 2024 Olympics, a moment that left her questioning her future. But in Tokyo, she found redemption. “I feel so good. I needed this…my coach was like Rose this 1.92 if you are able to clear it [in your] first attempt, you are going to make the final and here I am. I’m so so glad, I’m happy,” she said.
Her words capture the relief of an athlete who has fought hard to reclaim her confidence. The Tokyo crowd witnessed her resilience, and back home in Ghana, fans celebrated a breakthrough moment. Social media lit up with pride as her name trended, proof that her leap was bigger than sport.
The final, set for Sunday, September 21 at the Olympic Stadium, promises fierce competition. Yeboah enters as an underdog, yet her presence is already a victory. Whatever happens next, her journey has given Ghana reason to dream again.
