Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr, a sprinter and sergeant in the Sudanese army, was born in 1986 in Darfur, Sudan. When he was 6, his parents along with their six children moved to Khartoum to make their ends meet. He belongs to the Zaghawa (Beri) tribe, an ethnic group of Darfur, which revolted against the Sudanese government in 2003. This talented 400 m runner currently lives in Nyala, Sudan.
Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr took 47.12 seconds to finish and ranked 8th in Men’s 400 m, Heat 3 of Round 1 at the Beijing Olympics 2008.
Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr started his career as a football player, but later became an athlete when Mahmoud Keino, an athletic coach witnessed his 4.60 m long jump in the school championships (2001). Spotting his potential, Mahmoud Keino took Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr to the Khartoum’s national training centre. At Khartoum, the training kit was a donation from a British charity and the stadium was an incomplete structure. Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr and other Sudanese players lift concrete blocks attached to metal poles for weights. Neither the lack of resources nor the unstable political scenario can deter him and his teammates from practicing and participating in international games.
Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr first started with short sprints where he managed to complete the 100 m sprint in 10.8 and 200 m in 22.0 seconds. Jama Aden, British-Somali trainer, was responsible for encouraging Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr to switch from short sprints to 400 m and by the end of 2002 Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr was able to complete the full lap in a time of 47.81 at the Arab Junior Championships and won a silver medal for his second-place finish.
In the Afro-Asian Games (2003) in Hyderabad, India, he clinched the second place in a time of 45.44. At Ajuba (Nigeria) he bagged the silver medal for completing the full lap of the 400 m event at the All Africa Games (2003) in 45.22 time limit. Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr participated in the World Youth Championships in Sherbrooke, QC Canada in 2003 where he won the gold medal at a record time of 46.10. He was given a hero’s welcome at Khartoum for his outstanding performance.
In 2004 Arab Junior Championships, Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr finished first and earned the gold medal for his commendable efforts in completing the lap in 46.92. He could not practice properly due to a hamstring injury, but still he won a silver medal at the World Junior Championships in 2004. He Joined the Dakar High Performance Training Centre in December 2004 and came first in the Islamic Solidarity Games in 2005. He also finished first in the Arab Championships (2005) where he completed the full lap in 45.66. At the 2005 African Junior Championships, he won three gold medals in 200 m, 400 m, and 4 x 400 m relay events.
He came first and bagged the gold medal in the 2007 East African Championships. At the World Military Games (2007) which was held in Hyderabad, quarter miler, Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr finished first in a time of 46.00 to clinch the gold medal.
Nagmeldin Ali Abubakr spends a lot of time watching the races of Michael Johnson who is his favorite athlete and idol.
