Yellow Yeiyah

Yellow Yei Yah (born 9 September 1984 in Ondo, Nigeria) is a Nigerian competitive swimmer who specializes in sprint freestyle and butterfly events. He is an Olympian and a multiple-time national record holder who later transitioned into open water swimming.

Career

Pool Swimming and Olympics Yeiyah made his international debut representing Nigeria at the 8th African Swimming Championships held in Dakar, Senegal, in September 2006. At this event, he posted a time of 26.04 seconds in the 50-metre butterfly, finishing seventh. He secured his first major continental podium at the 2007 All-Africa Games in Algiers, where he won a silver medal in the 50-metre butterfly.

He gained further international exposure at the 2007 FINA World Championships in Melbourne, Australia. During the championships, he competed in a high volume of events, including the 50-metre and 100-metre freestyle, 100-metre butterfly, 200-metre individual medley, and the 4x100-metre medley relay.

Yeiyah qualified for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, representing Nigeria in the men's 50-metre freestyle. Competing in Heat 6 during the preliminary rounds, he finished first in his heat with a time of 24.00 seconds.

Open Water Swimming Following his Olympic appearance, Yeiyah transitioned to open water swimming in Nigeria. He was the consecutive winner of the 1.5-kilometre Five Cowrie Creek open water swimming competition, an event organized as part of the Lagos State Water Regatta, in both 2012 and 2013. He also secured a second-place finish at the 2014 Lagos Open Water Swimming Championships.

Personal bests Yeiyah set multiple national standards during his career. His recorded personal best pool times include:

50m Freestyle: 23.86 sec 100m Freestyle: 54.17 sec 50m Butterfly: 24.46 sec (National Record) 100m Butterfly: 57.15 sec (National Record) 200m Individual Medley: 2:26.31