Oyesade "Sade" Olatoye, a Nigerian-American Olympian, is a world-class athlete excelling in the shot put and hammer throw. After competing for the U.S. in the 2016 IAAF World U20 Championships, she began representing Nigeria in 2019. Since then, Sade has secured six global medals and consistently ranks among the top hammer throw athletes worldwide. Recently competing in the Paris 2024 Olympics, she currently holds a top 20 world ranking in hammer throw. Alongside her athletic pursuits, Sade is committed to becoming a physician, continuing her academic and professional journey.
Personal Collegiate Records: SP – 17.88m/ 58’8”| DT – 56.66m/185’11 | HT – 69.89m/229’3 | WT – 24.46m/80’3
Professional Athletic Honors:
• African Record holder Weight throw (25.32m)
• African Record holder Hammer throw (71.88m)
• 2024 Paris Olympian Olympic Qualifier
• 2024 All-African Games Shot put Silver Medalist (Ghana)
• 2024 All-African Games Hammer Throw Bronze Medalist (Ghana)
• 2024 African Championship Hammer Silver Medalist – Team Nigerian (Cameroon)
• 2023 World Athletics Championship Representative – Team Nigeria (Budapest)
• 2022 Commonwealth Games finalist (4th place)
• 2022 World Athletics Championship Representative - Team Nigeria (Eugene)
• 2022 African Championship Hammer Gold medalist - Team Nigeria (Mauritius)
• 2022 Commonwealth Games Finalist — 4th place
• 2022 Nigerian National Sports Festival Gold Medalist (Shotput & Hammer)
• 2019 All-African Games Shot put Gold Medalist (Morocco)
• 2019 All-African Games Hammer Throw Bronze Medalist (Morocco)
• 2019 World Athletics Championships Representative - Team Nigeria (Doha)
• Four-time national champion for Nigeria
College Academic Honors:
• Represented Ohio State as a team leader while balancing academics 6x-time Scholar- Athlete
• Big Ten Distinguished Scholar (2016-2021)
• 12x Deans list recipient
• 6x-time Ohio State Scholar-Athlete (2016-2021)
• 6x-time Academic All-Big Ten selection (2016-2021)
• Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar Nominee (2019, 2020)
• 2020 Wayne Duke postgraduate scholarship recipient
• 2020 NCAA winter sports postgraduate scholarship
• 2021 Varsity “O” Alumni Society postgraduate scholarship
• 2021 M/I Homes Foundation Award
• 2021 Ohio State Big Ten Medal of Honor Recipient
• 2021 NCAA Woman of the Year Big Ten Honoree
• 2021 NCAA Woman of the Year Nominee
• 2021 NCAA Today’s Top Ten Nominee
College Athletic Honors:
• NCAA Nine-time First team All-American
• Seven-time Conference Champion
• 2019 Weight Throw National Champion
• School record Holder in weight throw (24.46m/80’3) and hammer throw (69.89/229’3)
• Bowerman Watchlist Nominee (2019)
• USTFCCCA Great Lakes Field Athlete of the year (2019)
• Ohio State Women Athlete of the Year (2019)
Leadership and Development:
• Community Service Alliance {Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) - June 2014
• Bolivia Soles 4 Souls (La Paz, Bolivia) - July 2016
• MLK Day - Pay It Forward Volunteer - January 2016-Present
• Ohio State Wexner Medical Center Volunteer - Surgical Intensive Care Unit - 2017
• College Mentors for Kids Volunteer (Columbus, Ohio) - October 2017
• Habitat for Humanity (Columbus, Ohio) - January 2016-2018
• Girls on the Run Volunteer (Columbus, Ohio) - January 2016-Present
• High School Meet Volunteer (Columbus, Ohio) - January 2016-Present
• African Youth League (AYL) Fundraising Chair - August 2016-2017
Ohio State Overview
• Sade is one of the great students and great athletes in Ohio State athletics history.
• She graduated in May 2020 with a degree in the health sciences and is pursuing a master’s degree in bioethics at the Ohio State College of Medicine.
• She is a Big Ten Conference Distinguished Scholar for having a grade point average of 3.70 and above.
• She was nominated for the 2020 NCAA Woman of the Year.
• In February, 2020, she won the Big Ten’s Wayne Duke Postgraduate Scholarship, a $10,000 award toward her graduate studies.
• Last winter she was named a recipient of the NCAA Winter Sports Postgraduate Scholarship.
• She is a four-time academic all-Big Ten honoree and a six-time OSU Scholar-Athlete.
• As an athlete, Sade is tied with Buckeye greats Shandi Boyd-Pleasant and Rosalind Goodwin for the most individual Big Ten championships in school history in the field events – six.
• Sade has won four Big Ten shot put titles – indoors in 2017, 2018 and 2019 and outdoors in 2017 – and two Big Ten weight throw titles (2017 and 2019).
• She was named the 2019 Ohio State female athlete of the year.
• She is a two time Big Ten field athlete of the year (2017 and 2019 indoors) and athlete of the championships (2017 and 2019 indoors).
• Sade has qualified for the NCAA championships multiple times and she is a first-team All-American who won the NCAA title in 2019 in the weight throw.
• She holds four Ohio State records: both indoor (17.88m) and outdoor (17.88m) shot put marks along with weight throw (24.46m) and hammer throw (67.49m).
• During her time at Ohio State, Sade competed for the Nigerian Senior National Team and won the shot put championship at the 2019 All-African Games in Rabat, Morocco.
• She then represented Nigeria at the 2019 World Championship in Doha, Qatar, and hopes to represent Nigeria at the Tokyo Olympics this summer.
AS A SIXTH-YEAR (2020-21, COVID)
AS A FIFTH-YEAR (2019-20)
AS A SENIOR (2018-19)
Outdoor:
• Claimed silver at the Miami Power 5 Trailblazer Challenge in the hammer throw with a distance of 64.69m/212’3?.
• Placed third at the Florida Relays in the hammer throw with a distance of 62.70m/205’8?.
• Claimed silver and bronze in hammer throw (62.58m/205’4?) and discus (49.71/163’1?) at the Battle on the Bayou.
• Brought home a gold medal in shot put (16.63m/54’6.75?) and bronze in the hammer throw (63.25m/207’6?) at the Virginia Challenge.
• Swept the Jesse Owens classic in shot put (17.32m/56’10”), discus (48.63/159’6?) and hammer throw (67.49m/221’5?).
• Registered a career best distance in discus at the Big Ten Championships taking fifth (51.65m/169’5?).
• Claimed two silver medals at the Big Ten Championships in shot put (17.27m/56’8?) and hammer throw (66.36m/217’8?).
• Registered two career best throws in shot put (17.88m/58’8?) and hammer throw (69.37m/227’7?) claiming third and fourth at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
Indoor:
• Won the shot put title at the Jim Green Track and Field Invitational with a distance of 17.23m/56’6.5?.
• Won the shot put title (17.18m/56’4.5?) and weight throw title (22.03m/72’3.5?) at the Simmons-Harvey Big Ten Invitational.
• Claimed the weight throw title at the Dr. Sander Columbia Challenge (22.92m/75’2.5?).
• Placed first in both shot put (17.57m/57’7.75?) and weight throw (22.89m/75’1.25?) at the Rod McCravy Memorial Track and Field Meet.
• Brought home two gold medals in shot put (17.13m/56’2?) and weight throw (23.61m/77’1.75) at the Clemson Tiger Paw Invitational.
• Won the shot put title at the Ohio State Tune-Up with a distance of 17.73m/56’2?.
• Claimed two Big Ten Championship titles in the shot put (17.88m/58’6.8?) and weight throw distance of 24.07m/78’11.75.
• Won the National Championships title in weight throw at the NCAA Divisison I Indoor Track and Field Championships with a career best distance of 24.46m/80’3?.
• Placed fourth at the NCAA Division I National Championships.
AS A JUNIOR (2017-18)
Outdoor:
• Competing unattached, finished first in the hammer throw with a mark of 64.50m/211’7?, second in the shot put with a mark of 16.73m/54’10.75? and fifth in the discus with a throw of 48.42m/158’10”.
Indoor:
• Claimed gold in the shot put with a throw of 17.27m/56’8? and set a career-best in the weight throw with a silver-medal mark of 23.84m/78’2.75? at the Big Ten Championships.
• Won the shot put at the Buckeye Tune-Up (16.78m/55’0.75?), the Simmons-Harvey Quad (15.73m/51’7.25?) and the Buckeye Tune-Up (personal best 17.34m/56’10.75?).
• Took first in the weight throw at the Columbia Challenge (21.44m/70’4.25?), the Simmons-Harvey Quad (22.76m/74’8.25?), and the Buckeye Invitational (21.32m/69’11.5?).
• Placed second in both the shot with a mark of 16.30m/53’5.75? and the weight with a mark of 20.65m/67’9? at the Kentucky Invitational.
• Also competed at the Music City Challenge.
AS A SOPHOMORE (2016-17)
Outdoor:
• Won gold at the Big Ten Championships in the shot put while setting the school record with a throw of 16.69m (54-9.25).
• Finished in fourth place at the Big Ten Championships in the hammer throw with a mark of 59.60m (195-06).
• Garnered silver in the hammer throw at the Ashland Alumni Open with a toss of 60.30m (197-10).
• Picked up a trio of bronze finishes at the Jesse Owens Classic in the hammer throw (career best 61.47m/201-08), shot put (16.03m/52-7.25) and discus throw (47.92m/157-03).
• Finished in third place at the Baldy Castillo Invitational in the shot put (15.34m/50-04) and hammer throw (60.68m/199-01).
• Discus throw of 50.18m (164-07) at the Florida Relays was the third best at the meet.
• Took fourth in the discus throw at the Baldy Castillo Invitational with a heave of 49.45m (162-03).
• Hammer throw of 56.28m (184-08) at the All-Ohio Championships was the fourth best of the meet.
• Took fifth in the shot put at the Tennessee Relays (15.55m/51-0.25) … heaved the discus 50.08m (164-04) at the Tennessee Relays for a sixth-place finish.
• Registered an eighth-place finish in the hammer throw at the Tennessee Relays with a heave of 54.96m (180-04).
• Picked up a pair of ninth-place showings at the Florida Relays in the hammer throw (60.54m/198-07) and shot put (15.96m/52-4.50).
• Represented Ohio State in the shot put and hammer throw at the NCAA East Preliminaries.
Indoor:
• Became first woman in program history to be named Big Ten Indoor Field Athlete of the Year.
• Named B1G Field Athlete of the Championships at the conference meet for winning shot put and weight throw titles.
• Became the first woman in program history to win both the shot put and weight throw at the same conference meet.
• Earned First Team All-America honors in the weight throw with a mark of 21.69m (71-02) at the NCAA Championships to place fourth.
• Won the shot put at the Big Ten Championships with a personal-best heave of 16.71m (54-10) to rank No. 3 in program history for the event.
• Won the weight throw at the Big Ten Championships with a toss of 21.60m (70-10.50) to help Ohio State place third as a team.
• Set the school record in the weight throw with a mark of 21.73m (71-3.50) to win gold at the Buckeye Tune Up.
• Won titles in the weight throw at the Buckeye Classic (21.63m/70-11.75), Kentucky Invitational (20.13m/66-0.50), Findlay Classic (21.25m/69-8.75), Armory Track Invitational (20.93m/68-08) and Spire Invite (20.62m/67-08).
• Captured shot put titles at the Findlay Classic (15.97m/52-4.75) and the Ohio State Tune Up (16.32m/53-6.50).
• Registered runner-up finishes in the shot put at the Buckeye Classic (15.10m/49-6.50) and Armory Track Invitational (15.88m/52-1.25).
• Placed third in the shot put at the Spire Invite with a mark of 15.72m (51-07).
• Took fourth in the shot put with a toss of 15.66m (51-4.50) at the Kentucky Invitational.
• Won a total of 10 titles during the season.
AS A FRESHMAN (2015-16)
Outdoor:
• Scored points for the Buckeyes at the Big Ten Championships in the discus throw (personal best 50.38 meters/sixth place) and hammer throw (personal best 61.01 meters/sixth place).
• Competed at the 2016 IAAF World U20 Championships in the hammer throw.
• Won the title in the discus throw at the Oliver Nikoloff Invite with a heave of 49.11 meters (161-1).
• Earned silver in the hammer throw with a mark of 58.44 meters (191-9) at the Power Conference Cardinal and Gold.
• Tossed the shot put 15.05 meters (49-4.5) at the Oliver Nikoloff Invite to finish in second place.
• Took third place at the Jesse Owens Classic in the discus throw (47.88 meters/157-1) and hammer throw (59.92 meters/196-7).
• Captured bronze in the shot put (15.19 meters/49-10) and hammer throw (56.90 meters/186-8) at the Alabama Relays.
• Earned fifth-place finishes at the Power Conference Cardinal and Gold in the discus throw (46.18 meters/151-6) and shot put (15.10 meters/49-6.5).
• Earned a fifth-place showing in the hammer throw (57.21 meters/187-8) at the LSU Battle on the Bayou.
• Represented the Buckeyes at the NCAA East Preliminaries in the hammer throw, discus throw and shot put.
Indoor:
• Recorded personal-best shot put mark of 16.04 meters (52-7.5) at the Kentucky Invitational to place fifth; that mark ranks fifth best in program history.
• Earned Buckeyes points at the Big Ten Championships in the weight throw with a toss of 19.92 meters (65-4.25) for sixth place.
• Captured the shot put title at the Ohio State Opener with a mark of 15.11 meters (49-7).
• Earned silver in the weight throw at the Spire NCAA Track and Field Invitational with a personal-best throw of 20.38 meters (66-10.5).
• Finished second in the weight throw (17.89 meters/58-8.5) at the Ohio State Opener.
• Collected bronze at the Power 5 Invite in the weight throw (18.45 meters/60-6.5).
• Fnished fourth in the shot put (15.07 meters/49-5.5) and weight throw (19.69 meters/64-7.25) at the Armory Track Invitational.
PRIOR TO OHIO STATE
• Three-time OHSAA Division I state outdoor champion (shot put, 2014-15 and discus, 2014).
• 2015 state runner-up in the discus.
• Runner-up in the shot put at the 2013 OHSAA Championships and third as a freshman in 2012.
• Fourth place in the discus and 14th in the shot put at the 2015 New Balance Outdoor Nationals.
• Ranked No. 7 in U.S. in the girl’s discus and No. 8 in the shot put as a senior in 2015.
