Mary Moraa

Mary Moraa
Moraa in 2023
Personal information
NationalityKenyan
Born (2000-06-15) 15 June 2000
Obwari, Nyanza Province, Kenya (now Kisii County, Kenya)
Sport
CountryKenya
SportAthletics
Events
400 metres, 800 metres
Coached byAlex Sang
Achievements and titles
Highest world ranking
1st (800 m, 2023)[1]
Personal bests
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  Kenya
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place2024 Paris800 m
World Championships
Gold medal – first place2023 Budapest800 m
Bronze medal – third place2022 Eugene800 m
Diamond League
First place2022800 m
First place2024800 m
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place2022 Birmingham800 m
African Games
Gold medal – first place2023 Accra400 m
Bronze medal – third place2023 AccraMixed 4 × 400 m relay
African U20 Championships
Gold medal – first place2019 Abidjan400 m
World Youth Championships
Silver medal – second place2017 Nairobi400 m

Mary Moraa (born 15 June 2000)[2] is a Kenyan athlete who specialises in the 800 metres. She won the gold medal at the 2023 World Athletics Championships, a bronze medal in the event at the 2022 World Athletics Championships and a gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Moraa is the Kenyan record holder for the 400 metres. She was the 2022 Diamond League 800 m champion. She also holds the world best in the 600 metres.

Background

Moraa was orphaned at age 2 after the death of her father and then her mother. She grew up with her grandparents, in Kisii in western Kenya. She won an education bursary through running.[3]

Career

Moraa specialized in the 400 metres distance until 2021. She made her international debut at the World Under-18 Championships in Nairobi and won the silver medal in the event with a personal best time of 53.31 seconds.[2] The following year, the 18-year-old placed fifth over the same distance at the World U20 Championships held in Tampere, Finland, clocking new best of 52.85 s in the heats.[2]

In 2019, she won in the 400 m the African U20 title, Kenyan senior title, and placed fourth at the African Games held in Rabat, Morocco.[2] She reached the semi-finals in her individual event at the Doha World Championships.[2] Her season's best was 51.75 s.[2] She made her debut in the 800 metres that year.[4]

Moraa transitioned to the 800 metres in 2020, and represented Kenya at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics in 2021 competing in the event, where she was eliminated in the semi-finals with a time of 2:00.47.[2][5]

In July 2022, Moraa won the bronze medal in the 800 m at the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, clocking a personal best of 1:56.71 behind Athing Mu (1:56.30) and Keely Hodgkinson (1:56.38).[6] The following month, she won a gold in the event at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games after storming through to beat Hodgkinson in the final.[7] She went from first to last and back to first in that race.[8] In September, Moraa became the Diamond League 800 m champion after she won final in Zürich.

Personal life

She is the cousin of Kenyan runner Sarah Moraa.[9][10] Mary Moraa has described her as her "kid sister" on social media.[11]

Achievements

Personal bests

International competitions

Representing  Kenya
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventTime
2017 World U18 Championships Nairobi, Kenya 22nd (h) 200 m 25.48
2nd 400 m 53.31 PB
4th 4 × 400 m mixed 3:24.92
2018 World U20 Championships Tampere, Finland 5th 400 m 52.94
2019 African U20 Championships Abidjan, Ivory Coast 1st 400 m 53.57
African Games Abidjan, Ivory Coast 4th 400 m 51.97
4th 4 × 400 m relay 3:32.93
World Championships Doha, Qatar 18th (sf) 400 m 52.11
11th (h) 4 × 400 m mixed 3:17.09
2021 World Relays Chorzów, Poland 13th (h) 4 × 400 m relay 3:39.34 SB
– 4 × 400 m mixed DQ
Olympic Games Tokyo, Japan 15th (sf) 800 m 2:00.47
2022 World Championships Eugene, OR, United States 3rd 800 m 1:56.71

PB

Commonwealth Games Birmingham, United Kingdom 29th (h) 400 m 59.51
1st 800 m 1:57.07
5th 4 × 400 m relay 3:32.28
2023 World Championships Budapest, Hungary 1st 800 m 1:56.03 PB
2024 African Games Accra, Ghana 1st 400 m 50.57
Olympic Games Paris, France 3rd 800 m 1:57.42
2025 World Championships Tokyo, Japan 7th 800 m 1:57.10

Circuit performances

Grand Slam Track results[12]
SlamRace groupEventPl.TimePrize money
2025 Kingston SlamShort distance 800 m8th2:00.97US$10,000
1500 mDNS
2025 Miami SlamShort distance 1500 m8th4:24.44US$30,000
800 m1st1:59.51
2025 Philadelphia SlamShort distance 1500 m7th4:25.79US$15,000
800 m5th2:00.92

Wins and titles

800 metres wins, other events specified in parentheses

National titles

References

  1. ↑ "World Rankings | Women's 800m (600m-1000m)".
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Mary MORAA – Athlete profile". World Athletics. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  3. ↑ "Mary Moraa exclusive: Orphaned as a toddler, Kenya's newly crowned 800m world champion won in mother's memory". Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  4. ↑ Mballa, Tony (5 May 2023). "Moraa promises more surprises this year as track season gets underway". The Star. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  5. ↑ Olobulu, Timothy (19 June 2021). "Conseslus, Timothy Cheruiyot out as Kenya names team for Tokyo Olympics". Capital Sports. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  6. ↑ Azzi, Alex (24 July 2022). "Athing Mu becomes first American woman to win 800m, keeps win streak alive". NBC Sports. Retrieved 24 July 2022.
  7. ↑ Ingle, Sean (6 August 2022). "Hodgkinson heartbreak as Moraa beats her to Commonwealth Games gold". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  8. ↑ Gault, Jonathan (30 December 2022). "How Did THAT Happen? Remembering the Strangest Moments in Running in 2022". LetsRun.com. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  9. ↑ "Sarah Moraa Wins Gold but Falls Short of Olympic Qualifying Time". Runnerstribe. 25 June 2024. Archived from the original on 5 October 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
  10. ↑ Wafula, Abigael (24 June 2024). "Sarah Moraa wins gold at African Championships but narrowly misses Olympic qualification". PulseSports. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
  11. ↑ Wafula, Abigael (8 January 2024). "Mary Moraa proud of younger sister making waves on the track". PulseSports. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
  12. ↑ "Grand Slam Track Results". Grand Slam Track. Retrieved 5 April 2025.
  13. ↑ "World Leaders by Ingebrigtsen & Korir Highlight 2022 Diamond League Final". LetsRun.com. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
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