Megan Nieman won the girls’ 400m hurdles final at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games in 57.75, beating Switzerland’s Mina Hirsbrunner by nine hundredths of a second and taking South Africa to ten medals, the most the country has won at any Youth Olympic Games.
The 17-year-old is the third South African to win gold in Dakar, and hers was the medal that moved the team past the nine won at Singapore 2010.
Girls’ 400m Hurdles Final
- 🥇 Megan Nieman (RSA) — 57.75
- 🥈 Mina Hirsbrunner (SUI) — 57.84
- 🥉 Michell Gómez (COL) — 58.90
Megan Nieman Was 2.81 Seconds Quicker Than Her Semi-Final
Nieman had come through Monday’s semi-final in 1:00.56, winning it ahead of Slovenia’s Zarja Zizek on 1:00.98 and Ghana’s Mary Coffie on 1:01.59, and easing down over the closing metres.
She took 2.81 seconds off that run in Tuesday’s final, and only Hirsbrunner was close enough at the line to make it a question.
Nieman holds the South African under-18 record over the distance and runs for Athletics Gauteng North.
She Named This Meeting As The Target
Speaking to The Top Runner earlier this year, Nieman set out what she was working towards.
“I’m working towards qualifying for the nationals in both the 100m hurdles and 400m hurdles and to put myself in a position to be considered for selection for the world junior champs and the Youth Olympic Games.” – Megan Nieman
She made the team, and then won the event.
Megan Nieman’s Tenth Medal At The Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games
South Africa’s haul in Dakar now reads three gold, four silver and three bronze. Callum Dreyer took the first gold in the rowing coastal beach sprints and Matao le Roux the second in the boys’ high jump.
Team South Africa confirmed that Tuesday was the final day of competition for its athletes in Senegal, which fixes the ten as the country’s final count for these Games.
Nieman’s gold was South Africa’s fifth medal of the athletics programme at the Stade Iba Mar Diop, where the track events ran from 8 to 10 November.
The Games themselves continue until 13 November.
