Judith Ayaa and athletic performances: Africa, Commonwealth Games, Olympic Games and the Pan Africa-USA meeting. USA

Judith Ayaa was born on July 15, 1952 in Koch Goma sub-county in Nwoya district of Uganda. During an era when African women’s participation in athletics was in its predominantly nascent and amateur stages, the young Ayaa became a resounding name among African track stars. Ayaa became the first Ugandan woman to win a medal at the Commonwealth Games. Three Ugandan Commonwealth Games women’s medalists have followed in her footsteps: Ruth Kyalisiima (Kyarisiima/ Kyalisima) in Brisbane in 1982, where she won silver in the 400m hurdles (57.10), the gold medalist Dorcus Inzikuru in the 3000m steeplechase in Melbourne in 2006 which set a Games record (9:19.51), and bronze medalist Winnie Nanyondo who was third in the 800m (2:01.38) in Glasgow in 2012.

Judith Ayaa’s career on the track would be short-lived, albeit significant.

Judith Ayaa’s record at the East and Central African Athletics Championships is astounding. In 1968 (Dar-es-Salaam), Ayaa won gold in the 100-meter dash, finishing in 11.5. The following year, in mid-August 1969, Ayaa consolidated and confirmed her formidable triumph in the same championships (Kampala) winning in the 100 meters (11.8), the 200 meters (25.0) and the 400 meters. (53.6). Considered a track and field legend in Zambia, Jane Chikambwe won silver behind Ayaa in the 100m and 200m. Here in Kampala in 1969, Ayaa was part of the Ugandan 4x100m relay team that won in 49.5. In the same year, based on her own personal best time of 53.6, Judith Ayaa was ranked among the top 10 400m runners in the world.

In 1970 at the same ACE Championship (Nairobi), Judith Ayaa was not far behind. The slender young woman in the “Mercedes-Benz” bodywork won again in the 100 m (11.8), 200 m (24.1) and 400 m (54.0 s).

It was at the Commonwealth Games held in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1970, that Judith Ayaa established herself as an international female athlete to be reckoned with. At these Games Judith Ayaa competed prominently in the 100m and 400m. On July 17, Ayaa placed in the first of five 100 m preliminary heats. She performed reasonably well, finishing second, behind Australia’s Jenny Lamy, in 11.92 seconds. But the semifinals, the next day, were not so fruitful for Ayaa. She was placed in the second of two semifinal heats, and was beaten in sixth place (11.93) and eliminated from advancing to the final. The finals later that day were won by Australia’s Raelene Boyle, followed by the legendary Ghana’s Alice Annum and then Australia’s Marion Hoffman for the bronze medal.

There were far fewer competitors in the 400 m, so there would only be two rounds of competition. On July 22, Ayaa was placed into the second of two first round eliminators. Ayaa won in a relatively staggering time of 52.86 seconds, a new Ugandan and African record. Ayaa’s finishing time ranked her 11th in the world in 1970. Alice Annum, who was scheduled to compete in the same round, did not start.

Ayaa advanced to the final that would be played the next day. But maybe she had run too fast instead of running relaxed, but enough to be in the top four of each round that he would automatically qualify for the final. Australia’s Sandra Brown was second and a full second behind Ayaa. The other heat of the semifinals in which she won Marilyn Neufville in 53.05, was more relaxed and tactful.

The next day’s final saw the diminutive but legendary 17-year-old Jamaican Marilyn Fay Neufville win in a world record 51.02. Neufville won by a staggering gap of over two seconds ahead of silver medalist Sandra Brown (53.66) of Australia; she slashed the previous world record of 51.7 set (1969) by Colette Besson and Nicole Duclos, both from France, by almost a second. Judith Ayaa, passed after slowing near the end of the race, likely due to fatigue after her unnecessary exertion in the semifinals, was third (53.77) in a photo finish behind Sandra Brown and captured the women’s medal. bronze. Fatigue had probably cost him at least the silver medal; but the Commonwealth bronze would be one of Ayaa’s most acclaimed international possessions!

Marilyn Neufville’s excellent career would be short-lived due to physical injuries and inconsequential surgery. At the 1974 Commonwealth Games held in Christchurch, New Zealand, Neufville was sixth in the 400 m final. And in the 1976 Olympic Games held in Montreal in Canada, she participated in the first round of the 400 m and she qualified for the next round, but did not advance to the next round due to injuries.

The next major event for Ayaa would be on July 16–17, 1971 at Duke University’s Wallace Wade Stadium in Durham, North Carolina. It was the USA vs. Africa vs. the Rest of the World meet (sometimes called the USA vs. Africa track meet). The event that drew a large capacity crowd totaling 52,000 spectators was a unified African team along with other nations (fourteen nations in total) against Team USA. Perhaps the main attraction was the Olympic gold medalist 1500m Kipchoge Keino, revered and renowned for his on-track rivalry with American middle distance legend and 1500m world record holder (3:33.1) Jim Ryun. Here at Duke, Keino was intent on breaking this world record.

Other internationally acclaimed runners in the competition included Kenyan Amos Biwott (Olympic steeplechase champion) and Tunisian long-distance legend Mohammed Gammoudi. Ugandan hurdler John Akii-Bua from Uganda, who was barely known internationally, was also there to compete.

Judith Ayaa won the gold medal at these USA-Pan Africa Games with 54.69. Second was Sports International’s Gwendolyn Norman (USA) with 55.42, third was Los Angeles Mercurettes’ Jarvis Scott (USA) with 56.0 and fourth was Titi Adeleke (Nigeria) with 59, 52. John Akii-Bua won in the intermediate hurdles, setting an African record (49.0) that would be the world’s best time for 1971. The smooth-sailing “flying policeman” Akii became a contender for the next Olympic Games in 1972 in Munich. Simultaneously, Ayaa gained international recognition though not to Akii’s level. Kip Keino failed to break the world record in the 1500m, but he led clearly and finished with an excellent time of 3:34.7.

John Myers relays the comments of Akii-Bua, here sometimes referred to as “John Akii-Buba” (1971: 6A): “The runners were good… The track is fast. It wasn’t uncomfortable.”

Other notable competitors in track and field competition included Americans Rodney Milburn and Ron Draper (high hurdles), Kenyans Robert Ouko (800m) and Benjamin Jipcho (hurdles); Steve Prefontaine (USA) and Miruts Yifter (Ethiopia) in the 5000m, and John Smith (USA) in the 400m.

As late as 1971, at the East and Central African Championships held in Lusaka, Zambia, Ayaa was the victor in the 400 m (54.7). She was also part of Uganda’s gold medal winning teams in the relay: 4x100m (48.7) and 4x400m (3:50.5).

The next big challenge for Ayaa, the 1972 Olympic Games held in Munich, Germany, would prove interesting. In the first round, Ayaa in lane two placed fourth (52.85s), thus qualifying for the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals, Judith Ayaa placed in lane 7 in her heat two of four heats. The top four finishers from each heat would advance to the semifinal. Ayaa finished comfortably in third place and set a Ugandan-African record of 52.68. The Ugandan record, Ayaa’s personal best, would stand for more than three decades. Of note, in these quarterfinals, Ayaa beat 26-year-old Colette Besson of France, the diminutive surprise winner in the same event at the previous Olympics (1968) in Mexico City. Besson was in lane 3 and fifth place of hers disqualified her from advancing to the next round.

Ayaa went through to the semifinals of the Olympic Games. She was in lane 2 and finished in 52.91 seconds, a seventh-place finish. Ayaa had put in quite a commendable performance, but the international competition was formidable and she Ayaa was eliminated in what would be her first and last Olympic competition. The eighth competitor, West Germany’s Christel Frese, fell during the race and did not finish.

In 1972, Ayaa became a four-time gold medalist in the 400 m at the East and Central African Championships. This time, in Dar-es-Salaam, Ayaa’s winning time was 55.7. She was part of the Ugandan team that won the gold medal in the 4x100m (48.7).

After 1972, Ayaa’s performance record would turn lackluster. She married and began to have children in close succession, and neglected sports. Amin’s tumultuous regime made the situation worse. Athletes were far less financially compensated for their exertion and injuries than they have increasingly been in recent decades. Ayaa’s death was far from glamorous; he was heartbreaking. Sometime later in her life, while caring for her two young children, Ayaa wrestled and sometimes begged on the streets of Kampala. He would crush stones for a living. Akii-Bua, also a national teammate with Ayaa at the 1972 Olympics, would be instrumental in gaining attention and intervening in Ayaa’s plight. She was located and a European benefactor helped with her expenses. Unfortunately, in 2002 Ayaa would die young at 48 or 49, at Mulago Hospital in Kampala. Ironically, Akii-Bua, who was also not doing well for her at the time, had died at roughly the same age as Ayaa, in early 1997 at the same hospital.

Ayaa’s reign on the women’s track was brief but excellent and long lasting. National and regional trophies and competitions in Northern Uganda are commemorated in the name of Judith Ayaa.

Works Cited

Myers, John. “Winning Score Host at Pan Africa Meet” in “Carolina Times” (July 24, 1971).