-Athlete-

Yamile Aldama Pozo

Born on August 14, 1972 in Havana, Pozo is a Sudanese triple jumper who formerly represented Cuba. After a failed attempt to acquire a British passport, she acquired the Sudanese citizenship in 2004. As a Cuban citizen, she won a world championship silver medal, and in 2003, Pozo set a North and Central American record with 15.29 meters. Her Sudanese record is 15.28 meters, achieved in August 2004 in Linz. In 1996, Pozo gained her first international success in the event, winning gold (14.39) at the 1996 Ibero-American Championships in Medellin, Colombia. Later that year, she leapt 14.43 and made the Olympic team for Atlanta but was unable to participate because of injury.

Pozo’s breakthrough came in 1999. After finishing 7th at the World Indoor Championships in Maebashi, Japan (14.47), she equaled the national record (14.60) in claiming her third national title in May and improved the record to 14.77 in winning the Pan American Games in Winnipeg two months later. In August, Pozo took the silver medal (14.61) at the World Championships in Seville but did not improve in the Olympic year, although she finished a respectable 4th in Sydney (14.30).

Source: Sudanese who made it big by Ola Diab.

Oladiab.com