Noélie Ditchakou Yarigo (born 26 December 1985) is a Beninese middle-distance runner who competes primarily in the 800 metres. She represented her country at the 2016 Rio, 2020 Tokyo Olympics and 2024 Paris Olympics.
Yarigo holds five Beninese national records including at 800 m indoors and out.
Career Noélie Yarigo set her first Beninese 800 metres record in 2003 at the age of 17, reducing it to 2:11.61 while still a teenager two years later. But she then took a long break from the sport and only returned in 2012 at the age of 26.
She serves with the Benin Air Force. She was given leave to prepare for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics and used it to train in France at the club run by the wife of her coach. At the Games, Yarigo broke for the first time the two-minute barrier in the heats with a time of 1:59.12.
At the postponed 2020 Tokyo Olympics, she twisted her ankle in the heats.
On 8 February 2023, at age 37 and after primarily focusing on being a pacemaker on the international racing circuit before, Yarigo set a significant personal best in the 800 m. She clocked 1:58.48 for second at the indoor Copernicus Cup in Toruń, Poland, improving her 1:59.12 set outdoors at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
Statistics International competitions
2005Jeux de la FrancophonieNiamey, Niger6th800 m2:11.615th4 × 400 m relay3:47.562007All-Africa GamesAlgiers, Algeria16th (h)800 m2:13.292013Jeux de la FrancophonieNice, France9th (h)800 m2:06.762014African ChampionshipsMarrakesh, Morocco5th800 m2:01.642015World ChampionshipsBeijing, China35th (h)800 m2:02.482016African ChampionshipsDurban, South Africa6th800 m2:02.68Olympic GamesRio de Janeiro, Brazil13th (sf)800 m1:59.782017Islamic Solidarity GamesBaku, Azerbaijan3rd800 m2:02.47Jeux de la FrancophonieNice, France2nd800 m2:01.27 –4 × 100 m relayDNFWorld ChampionshipsLondon, United Kingdom7th (sf)800 m1:59.742018African ChampionshipsAsaba, Nigeria7th800 m2:04.362019African GamesRabat, Morocco7th800 m2:04.66World ChampionshipsDoha, Qatar10th (sf)800 m2:00.752021Olympic GamesTokyo, Japan17th (sf)800 m2:01.412022World ChampionshipsEugene, United States22nd (sf)800 m2:01.522023World ChampionshipsBudapest, Hungary8th (sf)800 m1:59.432024World Indoor ChampionshipsGlasgow, United Kingdom3rd800 m2:03.15Olympic GamesParis, France22nd (sf)800 m2:01.352025World Indoor ChampionshipsNanjing, China23rd (h)800 m2:07.88World ChampionshipsTokyo, Japan52nd (h)800 m2:03.432026African ChampionshipsAccra, Ghana8th (h)800 m2:02.711 1Did not finish in the final
Personal bests 400 metres – 53.20 (Ouagadougou 2017) 400 metres indoor – 55.11 (Bordeaux 2014) 800 metres – 1:59.12 (Rio de Janeiro 2016) 800 metres indoor – 1:58.48 (Toruń 2023) 1000 metres – 2:36.30 (Heusden-Zolder 2021) 1500 metres – 4:20.09 (Blois 2018)
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