Marie Josée Ta Lou-Smith

In the streets of Koumassi, Abidjan, Ivory Coast, a young girl would outrun all the boys in her class. That girl was Marie-Josée Ta Lou. Her path to greatness started with a beautiful coincidence - Florence Olonade, the 1988 Ivory Coast 100m champion and her mother's old classmate, spotted her talent and invited her for a trial. Marie-Josée showed up barefoot, with no preparation, and beat all of Olonade's trained athletes in a 200m race. Just pure talent flowing through her veins.

Life had different plans than her mother's dreams of medical school. But Marie-Josée found her destiny on the track. Through malaria, through lonely training in China, through countless setbacks, she kept pushing forward. The track became her home, her sanctuary, her battlefield.

Then came 2016, the Rio Olympics. Seven-thousandths of a second - that's how close she came to bronze in the 100m. Seven-thousandths. Can you imagine the heartache? But champions aren't built on easy victories. She rose, stronger and more determined. 2017 brought her two silver medals at the World Championships, and then in 2022, she did what seemed impossible - setting the Afrikan record in 100m at 10.72 seconds beating the previous holder by 3 seconds.

From a barefoot runner to an Afrikan record holder, Marie-Josée's story isn't just about athletics. It's about an Afrikan woman who proved that talent, combined with determination, can take you from running barefoot in Abidjan to breaking records on the world stage.

At WOLA, we celebrate stories like Marie-Josée's. Stories that remind young Afrikan women that their potential is limitless, their dreams are valid, and their future is theirs to shape.

~Maryam J-K Gadzama, Chief Editor 24/25 Committee

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