Maria Benedicta Chigbolu (born 27 July 1989) is an Italian sprinter, who specializes in the 400 metres. She competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics, in 4 × 400 m relay.

Biography

Maria Chigbolu was born in Rome to an Italian mother and a Nigerian father. She has five siblings. Her grandfather Julius Chigbolu was a Nigerian athlete, who competed at the 1956 Summer Olympics, and later became president of Athletics Federation of Nigeria. She is engaged with the Italian sprinter Matteo Galvan.

Career

Besides medals in the 400 metres and 4 × 400 m relays from the 2013 and 2018 Mediterranean Games, Chigbolu won a bronze in the individual event at the 2016 European Championships.

She was a member of the 2016 Olympics squad, which set the Italian national record at the 4x400 metres with a time of 3:25.16 sec.

Chigbolu took bronze medals at the 2019 World Relays (4 × 400 m), and at the 2019 European Team Championships (400 m and 4 × 400 m).

At the Italian Championships, she won 1 time in the 400 metres (2017), 8 times in the 4 × 400 m relay, and twice in the indoor relays (4 × 200 m, 4 × 400 m).

Achievements

International competitions

YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventTimeNotes
2013Mediterranean GamesMersin, Turkey2nd400 m52.66PB
1st4 × 400 m3.32.44SB
World ChampionshipsMoscow, RussiaDQ (final)4 × 400 mDQ170.6
2014European ChampionshipsZürich, Switzerland7th4 × 400 m3:31.31
2015European Indoor ChampionshipsPrague, Czech Republic(heats)400 m54.17
World ChampionshipsBeijing, China(heats)400 m52.48
(heats)4 × 400 m3:27.07SB
DécaNationParis, France5th400 m52.81
2016European ChampionshipsAmsterdam, Netherlands(semifinals)400 m52.69
3rd4 × 400 m3:27.49SB
Olympic GamesRio de Janeiro, Brazil(heats)400 m52.06
5th4 × 400 m3.27.05(NR h)
2017European Indoor ChampionshipsBelgrade, Serbia4th4 × 400 m3:32.87
European Team ChampionshipsLille, France4th400 m52.36
World ChampionshipsLondon, United Kingdom(heats)400 m53.00
(heats)4 × 400 m3:27.81SB
2018Mediterranean GamesTarragona, Spain3rd400 m52.14
1st4 × 400 m3:28.08GR
European ChampionshipsBerlin, Germany(semifinals)400 m52.26
5th4 × 400 m3:28.62
2019IAAF World RelaysYokohama, Japan3rd4 × 400 m3:27.74SB
European Team ChampionshipsBydgoszcz, Poland3rd400 m52.19
3rd4 × 400 m3:27.32SB
World ChampionshipsDoha, Qatar(heats)400 m52.63
(heats)4 × 400 m3:27.57

National individual competitions

See also

External links