Penn grad Ashley Anumba misses out on women’s throwing final at 2024 Paris Olympics

Nearly a year ago, 2021 Penn graduate Ashley Anumba wrote her goal to become an Olympian. And now, almost a year later, Anumba has officially crossed that goal off her checklist.

Anumba stepped out under the bright lights of the Stade de France for the qualifying rounds of the women’s discus throw. She repped green and white as part of Team Nigeria.

For the discus event, the 32 total competitors were split into two qualifying groups. Each athlete received three attempts to step into the throwing cage and launch the discus as far as possible. The 12 farthest throws earned a ticket to the finals, with all throws also being required to exceed the qualification standard of 64 meters.

The lights were brightest on Anumba, as she was the very first competitor of the event. She sent the discus flying and recorded a throw of 57.23m to start her day off. Everyone else in her qualifying group took their first attempt in rapid succession. Notably, reigning gold medalist Valarie Allman of Team USA was in her qualifying group. Allman qualified for the finals in her first throw of 69.59m, a mark surpassing her gold medal-winning throw of 68.98m at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Anumba’s second attempt did not count, meaning that it was all up to her third and final attempt. She spun in the throwing cage to gain momentum and put up her best score of the day with 58.83m. But unfortunately, it was not enough to put her in finals contention.  

While Anumba will not bring Nigeria an Olympic medal, she has already secured another medal.

Earlier this year, Anumba won her first gold medal at the 2024 African Championships held in Douala, Cameroon. There, her throw of 59.30m secured her victory and put herself ahead of compatriots Obiageri Amaechi and Chioma Onyekwere — both of whom joined her in Paris for the discus throw. The trio swept the podium for Nigeria at the African Championships.

A year prior, Anumba made her mark at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary. There, she made a personal best throw of 61.98m.

But before she stepped foot on the international stage, Anumba proved herself at the collegiate level. In her freshman year at Penn, she placed first in the discus throw at the 2018 Ivy League Heptagonal Championships. Simultaneously, she set the program record at Penn with a throw of 55.00m. After graduation, Anumba took her talents to the University of Virginia, where her career continued to flourish. She was most recently a 2023 first team All-American in a season where she won silver at both the NCAA and ACC Outdoor Championships.

Anumba is currently enrolled at the University of Virginia School of Law and did not take a gap year to train for the Olympics, because of her passion for both law and discus. She is on path to graduate next spring — the next goal of hers to be checked off.