Jessika Gbai

Jessika Gbai
Personal information
Full nameJessika Lauren Maca Gbai
NationalityIvory Coast
Born (1998-12-29) 29 December 1998 (age 27)
Daloa, Côte d'Ivoire
EducationHoward University
Height1.67 m (5 ft 6 in)
Sport
SportAthletics
Event
Sprint
Achievements and titles
Personal bests100m: 11.22 (Clermont, 2023)
200m:22.36 (Paris, 2024)
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing the  Ivory Coast
African Championships
Gold medal – first place2024 Douala200 m

Jessika Lauren Maca Gbai (born 29 December 1998) is an Ivorian track and field athlete from the Ivory Coast who competes as a sprinter. Gbai made her Olympic debut for women’s 200m on 4 August 2024 at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. And successfully made into the final, finished in 8th for her Olympic-Final debut as a first-time Olympian.

Early life

Jessika Gbai born in Côte d'Ivoire, moved to Philadelphia (USA) as a child, she holds both citizenships. Was cleared by World Athletics to represent Côte d'Ivoire starting from 1 June 2022.

She graduated from Howard University, where she competed for the Howard Bison track and field team and graduated in 2022 with degrees in biology and political science.

Career

Jessika Gbai competed in the 200 metres at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, running 22.82 seconds in the semi-final.

She was part of the Ivory Coast 4x100m relay team that ran 42.23 seconds to set a new national record win the Diamond League meeting in Lausanne. In August 2023, she set a new personal best time for the 200 meters of 22.43 seconds in Kinshasa jn winning gold for the Ivory Coast at the 2023 Francophone Games.

Selected for the 200 metres at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest kn August 2023, she qualified for the semi-finals.

She ran as part of the Ivory Coast 4x100m relay team which qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics at the 2024 World Relays Championships in Nassau, Bahamas.

Jessika Gbai made her Olympics debut for women’s 200m on 4 August 2024 at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. In 200m, she finished her semi finals with a new personal best 22.36s. She successfully made into the final for 200m as a first-time Olympian, finished in 8th with a time of 22.70s She also competed in the 4x100m relay at the Games.

She ran 23.14 seconds to finish sixth in the 200 metres at the 2025 Xiamen Diamond League event in China, in April 2025. She also finishes sixth at the 2025 Shanghai Diamond League event in China on 3 May 2025, in a new seasons best time of 22.88 seconds. In May 2025, she was named as a challenger for the long sprints category at the 2025 Grand Slam Track event in Philadelphia. She finished sixth over 200 metres at the Diamond League event at the 2025 Golden Gala in Rome on 6 June 2025. She placed seventh over 200 metres at the Diamond League Final in Zurich on 28 August.

In September 2025, she was a semi-finalist in the 200 metres at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo, Japan. She also ran in the women's 4 x 100 metres relay at the championships.

Athletics achievements

Information from her World Athletics profile unless otherwise noted.

Personal bests

Type Distance Time (s) Wind (m/s) Venue Date Notes
Individual events
Indoor 60 metres 7.51 N/a Virginia Beach, United States 23 February 2022
200 metres sh 23.78 N/a Lynchburg, United States 15 February 2020
N/a Virginia Beach, United States 23 February 2022
300 metres sh 37.62 N/a Gainesville, United States 17 January 2025
400 metres sh 53.19 N/a Clemson, United States 31 January 2025 NR
Outdoor 100 metres 11.22 +0.9 Clermont, United States 14 May 2023
200 metres 22.36 +0.1 Paris, France 5 August 2024
300 metres 36.16 N/a Coral Gables, United States 15 March 2024 NR
400 metres 51.94 N/a Gainesville, United States 13 April 2024 NR
Team events
Indoor 4 × 200 metres relay sh 1:39.68 N/a New York, United States 15 January 2022
4 × 400 metres relay sh 3:38.67 N/a Virginia Beach, United States 23 February 2022
Outdoor 4 × 100 metres relay 41.90 N/a Budapest, Hungary 25 August 2023 AR NR
4 × 400 metres relay 3:25.08 N/a Gainesville, United States 30 March 2024

International competitions

Representing  Ivory Coast
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventTimeNotes
2022 World Championships Eugene, Oregon 18th (sf) 200 m 22.84
2023 World Championships Budapest, Hungary 19th (sf) 200 m 22.88
— 4 × 100 m relay DNF
2024 World Relays Nassau, The Bahamas 6th (h) 4 × 100 m relay 42.63
African Championships Douala, Cameroon 1st 200 m 22.84
Olympic Games Paris, France 8th 200 m 22.70
— 4 × 100 m relay DQ TR17.2.3
2025 World Championships Tokyo, Japan 11th (sf) 200 m 22.56 SB
12th (sf) 4 × 100 m relay 44.64

Circuit performances

Grand Slam Track results
SlamRace groupEventPl.TimePrize money
2025 Philadelphia SlamLong sprints 400 m7th52.54US$25,000
200 m3rd22.85

References

  1. 1 2 "Jessika Gbai". World Athletics. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  2. 1 2 Paris 2024 (5 August 2024). "Olympic Schedule & Results-Athletics - Women's 200m". Paris 2024 Olympics. Retrieved 5 August 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ↑ Paris 2024 (30 July 2024). "Paris 2024 — GBAI Jessika". Paris 2024 Olympics. Retrieved 30 July 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  4. ↑ Gary, LaShandra N. (May 23, 2022). "Howard University Grad Stories: Jessica Gbai". thedig.Howard.edu. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  5. ↑ Freeman, Sholnn Z. (August 1, 2024). "From Philly to Paris: Jessika Gbai's Olympic Sprint to Success". Retrieved August 2, 2024.
  6. ↑ "Gbai's Run Ends at the World Athletics Championships". meacsports.com. 19 July 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  7. ↑ "Preview: Men's and Women's Relays - World Athletics Championships 2023". Watch Athletics. 17 August 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  8. ↑ "WCH Budapest 23 preview: 4x100m". World Athletics. 12 August 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  9. ↑ "9th Francophonie Games: Ivorians Jessica Gbaï and Cheickna Traoré win the gold medal respectively in the Women's and Men's 200m". abidjan.net. August 5, 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
  10. ↑ "Jessica Lauren Gbai et Maboundou Koné seront aux Jeux Olympiques de Paris 2024". lekpakpatosportif. 4 August 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  11. ↑ "Women's 200m Results: World Athletics Championships 2023". Watch Athletics. 23 August 2023.
  12. ↑ "Women 4x100m Results - World Athletics Relays Championships 2024". World Athletics. 5 May 2024. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  13. ↑ "Women's 4 x 100 Metres Relay - Paris Olympic Games 2024 Athletics". Watch Athletics. 9 August 2024. Retrieved 28 December 2024.
  14. ↑ "Results - Xiamen Diamond League 2025". Watch Athletics. 26 April 2025. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
  15. ↑ "Results - Shanghai/Suzhou Diamond League 2025". Watch Athletics. 3 May 2025. Retrieved 5 May 2025.
  16. ↑ Chavez, Chris (May 23, 2025). "Grand Slam Track Announces Full Athletes Field For Philadelphia: Full Racers, Challengers Competing". Citiusmag.com. Retrieved 28 May 2025.
  17. ↑ "Results - Rome Diamond League Golden Gala 2025". Watch Athletics. 6 June 2025. Retrieved 7 June 2025.
  18. ↑ "Results - Weltklasse Zurich Diamond League 2025". Watch Athletics. 28 August 2025. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
  19. ↑ "World Athletics Championships, Tokyo 2025". World Athletics. 18 Sep 2025. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
  20. ↑ "World Athletics Championships, Tokyo 2025". World Athletics. 18 Sep 2025. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  21. ↑ "Grand Slam Track Results". Grand Slam Track. Retrieved April 5, 2025.