Sport
Zamzam Mohamed Farah (Samsam Maxamed Faarax)
Zamzam Mohamed Farah (born 19 March 1991) is a Somali 400 m runner from Mogadishu. She was one of two Somali athletes at the London 2012 Olympics and carried the flag. She trained in Mogadishu without proper facilities, ran her heat in 1:20.48 while fasting, and said afterwards she had received death threats. She said, 'Somalia is not dead. It's alive.'
Zamzam Mohamed FarahSamsam Maxamed Faarax · Zamzam Farah
- Lived
- 1991-03-19 to today
- Known as one of
- Sport
- Places
- Muqdisho and Banaadir
- Era
- Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 1 sources
Who is she?
Zamzam Mohamed Farah is a Somali athlete from Mogadishu who runs the 400 metres (Wikipedia, Zamzam Mohamed Farah). She was one of only two Somali athletes at the 2012 Summer Olympics, and Somalia's flag bearer (same source). See sport in Somalia.
Training in Mogadishu
She was born on 19 March 1991 (Wikipedia). She has said Mo Farah inspired her to run (same source). Her training grounds lacked proper equipment, and she and her teammates trained outdoors on a route they called "the road of death" (same source).
London 2012
She ran her 400 m heat in 1:20.48, about 30 seconds behind the winner, and was the slowest finisher of the first round (Wikipedia). She was fasting for Ramadan while she competed (same source). During the Games she received death threats online (same source). Wikipedia says she did not apply for asylum, despite some reports (same source).
She said: "The most important thing is being able to carry the Somali flag with 203 other countries in the Olympics. That in itself is success" (same source). She also said: "Somalia is not dead. It's alive" (same source). See Samia Yusuf Omar, who ran for Somalia in 2008.
In short
A Mogadishu runner who carried Somalia's flag at the London 2012 Olympics and ran the 400 metres.
Sources
- Wikipedia, Zamzam Mohamed Farah · en.wikipedia.org
Zamzam Mohamed FarahSamsam Maxamed Faarax · Zamzam Farah
- Lived
- 1991-03-19 to today
- Known as one of
- Sport
- Places
- Muqdisho and Banaadir
- Era
- Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 1 sources
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Where this matters
Same era
- Australia18,401 people of Somali ancestry and 8,101 born in Somalia lived in Australia at the 2021 Census, more than half in Victoria. History, work, issues.
- Birmingham (Somali diaspora)About 17,000 to 21,600 Somalis live in Birmingham (Census 2021), mostly in Nechells, Newtown, Small Heath and Alum Rock. History, work, health and ties home.
- Bristol (Somali diaspora)9,167 people in Bristol identified as Somali or Somalilander in Census 2021, the city's largest minority group. Where they live, work, housing, leaders and ties home.
- Calgary, Alberta, Canada2,845 people of Somali origin lived in Calgary at the 2021 Census, plus 890 in Brooks. How they came, who serves them and what they face.
- Denmark (Somali diaspora)21,885 people of Somali origin lived in Denmark in 2026, half born there. Numbers, history, work, permit reviews, and ties home.
- DjiboutiAbout 13,900 refugees from Somalia live in Djibouti (Aug 2026): numbers since 1990, Ali Addeh, Holl-Holl, the 2017 refugee law, Arta 2000 and 2025 returns.
Keep reading
- Abdi Bile: Somalia's world champion at 1,500 metresAbdi Bile, Somali runner born in Laascaanood in 1962: his 1987 world 1,500 metres title in Rome, his George Mason years, his records and later life.
- Mo Farah (Hussein Abdi Kahin)Mo Farah, born Hussein Abdi Kahin in 1983: four Olympic and six world titles, knighted in 2017, and his 2022 account of being trafficked as a child.
- Bashir AbdiBashir Abdi (born 1989): Somali-born Belgian runner, Olympic marathon medallist and European record holder.
- Samia Yusuf Omar (Saamiya Yuusuf Cumar)Samia Yusuf Omar (1991–2012): Mogadishu sprinter who ran for Somalia at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
- Omar Artan (Cumar Cabdulqaadir Cartan)Omar Artan (born 1992): Somali FIFA referee, CAF Referee of the Year 2025, refused US entry before the 2026 World Cup.
- Ramla Ali (Ramla Cali)Ramla Ali (born 1989): Somali-British boxer, Somalia's first Olympic boxer and IBF and WBO world champion from 2026.