Judy Bell-Gam

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| name = Judy Bell-Gam

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| birth_date = August 24, 1956

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| nationality = Nigerian

| country = {{NGR}}

| sport = Track and field

| event = 100 metres hurdles

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Judy Bell-Gam (born August 24, 1956) is a Nigerian former track and field athlete. She won the 100 metres hurdles for Nigeria at the first African Championships in Dakar in 1979 and also was Nigeria's first winner in that event at the 1978 All-Africa Games.

{{citation|editor-surname1= IAAF|title=1st IAAF/VTB Bank Continental Cup – IAAF Statistics Handbook – Split 2010|at=p. 183|date=2010|language=German

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Life

Bell-Gam and her twin sister, Bella, were born in Opobo Town, Rivers State in 1956. They would both become athletes. They attended the Government Primary School in Afikpo, the Methodist School, Uwani in the state of Enugu and the Union Secondary School, Ikot Ekpene . The girls were in Enugu when the Nigerian Civil War started in 1967 and they moved south to Nnewi. At the end of the war, Bell-Gam returned to school in Ikot Ekpene.

{{citation|surname1=Supo Ibikunle|editor-surname1= Daily Times|title=Queens of the tracks|publication-place=Lagos|date=September 1978|language=German

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Among her first international honours was a silver medal in the 100 m hurdles at the 1977 West African Games, finishing second on home turf behind her compatriot Modupe Oshikoya.[http://www.gbrathletics.com/ic/wafg.htm West African Games]. GBR Athletics. Retrieved 2020-05-06.

Judy Bell-Gam won the gold medal in the 100 m hurdles at the African Games in 1978 in Algiers in a time of 13.67 s, ahead of Ugandan Ruth Kyalisima and her twin sister Bella Bell-Gam.[http://www.gbrathletics.com/ic/afg.htm All-Africa Games]. GBR Athletics. Retrieved 2020-05-06. At the African Athletics Championships in Dakar in 1979, she ran 14.13 s in the same discipline in front of her sister and the Moroccan Fatima El Faquir and received the gold medal.

{{cite web|title=African Championships|website=gbrathletics.com|publisher=|url=http://www.gbrathletics.com/ic/afc.htm|url-status=|access-date=|archive-url=|archive-date=|last=|date=|year=|language=|pages=|quote=}}

Subsequently, at the 1979 IAAF World Cup in Montreal she ran the 100 n hurdles in 13.93 and was seventh.

{{cite web|title=Track and Field Statistics|website=brinkster.net|publisher=trackfield.brinkster.net|url=http://trackfield.brinkster.net/Tournaments.asp?TourCode=C&Year=1979&Gender=W&TF=T&P=F|url-status=|format=|access-date=|archive-url=|archive-date=|last=|date=|year=|language=|pages=|quote=}}

She was also the winner of the hurdles at the All-Africa University Games that year.[http://www.gbrathletics.com/ic/afsg.htm African and West African University Games]. GBR Athletics. Retrieved 2020-05-06.

Legacy

In 2018 Oluwatobiloba Amusan won her first African Championships title in the hurdles at the Asaba African Championships.{{Cite web|title=Tobi Amusan Archives|url=https://elpasoheraldpost.com/tag/tobi-amusan/|website=El Paso Herald-Post|language=en-US|access-date=2020-04-25|archive-date=2020-08-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803112157/https://elpasoheraldpost.com/tag/tobi-amusan/|url-status=dead}} This extended a Nigerian tradition in the event, started by Bell-Gam, with other Nigerian victors including Maria Usifo, Ime Akpan, Glory Alozie, Olutoyin Augustus, Seun Adigun, who had won this race for Nigeria at the first African Championships.{{Cite web|title=Asaba 2018: Ethiopia Nicks First Gold, Ta Lou Storms Into 100m Semis - Complete Sports Nigeria|url=https://www.completesports.com/asaba-2018-ethiopia-nicks-first-gold-ta-lou-storms-into-100m-semis/|last=Usenekong|first=Gold|date=2018-08-02|website=Complete Sports|language=en-US|access-date=2020-05-05|archive-date=2020-08-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200813201259/https://www.completesports.com/asaba-2018-ethiopia-nicks-first-gold-ta-lou-storms-into-100m-semis/|url-status=dead}}