Cyrèna Samba-Mayela, the French national record holder, first made her mark on the international stage winning the 2022 World Indoor Championship 60m hurdles at 21 years old. That’s where global fans were introduced to her punching first steps out of the blocks.

With the force of a loaded pinball at the start, her success continued at the European Championships as Cyrèna ended the race by hurdle three and finished in 12.31 seconds.

Then this past summer, under the eyes and expectations of her home nation, Samba-Mayela delivered a silver medal in a thrilling 12 second drag race that erupted the fans in the Stade de France into frenzy. She walked onto the track a hopeful, and left a superstar.