Zakia Mrisho Mohamed

Who is Zakia Mrisho Mohamed?

Zakia Mrisho Mohamed is a Tanzanian long distance runner who specialises in track and road running. She represented her country in the 5000 metres at the 2008 Olympic Games.

Born in Singida, She attended her first major international athletics competition in 2003, taking part in the 3000 metres in which she finished sixth. She won the Cinque Mulini cross country meeting in 2004, becoming the first Tanzanian woman to do so. She was selected for the 2005 IAAF World Cross Country Championships and managed to finish in twentieth place in the long race. She came sixth in the 5000 m at the 2005 World Championships in Athletics and third at the World Athletics Final a month later. She represented Tanzania at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, finishing eighth in the 5000 m final.

At the 2007 IAAF World Cross Country Championships she was 23rd overall but she was less successful on the track, failing to make it out of the 5000 m heats of the 2007 World Championships in Athletics. The same fate awaited her at her first Olympic Games in Beijing the following year, although she did managed a fourth place finish in the 3000 m at the 2008 IAAF World Athletics Final as well as competing in the 5000 m event. She reached her first major global final in the next season at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics, taking 15th place in the 5000 m.