Athletics at the III All-Africa Games
Dates	20–27 July 1978
Host city	Algiers, Algeria
← 1973 Lagos 1987 Nairobi → 1978 All-Africa Games

The third All-Africa Games were held in July 1978 in Algiers, Algeria.

New events were added to the athletics program; Decathlon and pentathlon, for men and women respectively, as well as men's 20 km road walk. Three nations also won their first medals at these championships these being Tunisia, Sudan and Upper Volta.

Malian discus thrower Namakoro Niaré won his third title, being the only athlete to do so. Four athletes, two male and two female, won more than one event:

• El Kashief Hassan, Sudan (200 metres and 400 metres)
• Hannah Afriyie, Ghana (100 metres and 200 metres)
• Charlton Ehizuelen, Nigeria (long jump and triple jump)
• Modupe Oshikoya, Nigeria (high jump and long jump)
• Nagui Asaad, Egypt, won his second Gold medal in Shot Put of the All Africa Games in 1978, Algeria, after his first in 1973, All-Africa Games Algeria Nigeria.

Medal summary

Men's events

Event	Gold		Silver		Bronze
100 metres (wind: -0.9 m/s)	Amadou Meïté  Côte d'Ivoire	10.35 GR	Peter Okodogbe  Nigeria	10.45	Ohene Karikari  Ghana	10.46
200 metres (wind: +0.6 m/s)	Hassan El Kachief  Sudan	20.77 GR, NR	Patrice Ouré  Côte d'Ivoire	20.90	Roland Joe Siai-Siai  Nigeria	20.98
400 metres	Hassan El Kachief  Sudan	45.32 GR	Dele Udo  Nigeria	45.65	Cyril Etoori  Uganda	45.65
800 metres	James Maina  Kenya	1:47.14	Amar Brahmia  Algeria	1:47.54	Peter Lemashon  Kenya	1:47.83
1500 metres	Filbert Bayi  Tanzania	3:36.21 GR	Wilson Waigwa  Kenya	3:36.48	Amar Brahmia  Algeria	3:37.33
5000 metres	Yohannes Mohamed  Ethiopia	13:44.39 GR	Mike Musyoki  Kenya	13:44.79	Suleiman Nyambui  Tanzania	13:49.60
10,000 metres	Henry Rono  Kenya	27:58.90 GR	Mike Musyoki  Kenya	28:05.20	Mohamed Kedir  Ethiopia	28:42.00
Marathon	Richard Mabuza  Swaziland	2:21:53 GR	Dereje Nedi  Ethiopia	2:23:08	Girma Guebre  Ethiopia	2:27:35
3000 metre steeplechase	Henry Rono  Kenya	8:15.82 GR	James Munyala  Kenya	8:25.68	Kip Rono  Kenya	8:26.38
110 metres hurdles (wind: -0.5 m/s)	Fatwell Kimaiyo  Kenya	13.89 GR	Philip Sang  Kenya	14.02	Thomas Nnakwe  Nigeria	14.35
400 metres hurdles	Daniel Kimaiyo  Kenya	49.48	John Akii-Bua  Uganda	49.55	Peter Rwamuhanda  Uganda	50.18
4 × 100 metres relay	Ghana Ernest Obeng Albert Lomotey George Enchill Ohene Karikari	39.24 GR	Nigeria Peter Okodogbe Roland Siai-Siai James Olakunle Kolawode Abdulai	39.39	Congo Jean-Pierre Bassegela Louis Nkanza Théophile Nkounkou Antoine Kiakouama	39.79
4 × 400 metres relay	Nigeria Olurotimi Peters Ahmed Garba Felix Imadiyi Dele Udo	3:03.24 GR	Uganda John Akii-Bua Silver Ayoo Mike Okot Cyril Etoori	3:04.20	Kenya	3:05.92
20 kilometre road walk	Benamar Kachkouche  Algeria	1:39:21	Hunde Ture  Egypt	1:39:51	Elisha Kasuka  Kenya	1:43:21
High jump	Paul Ngadjadoum  Chad	2.16 GR	Hamid Sahil  Algeria	2.14	Amadou Dia Bâ  Senegal	2.08
Pole vault	Lakhdar Rahal  Algeria	5.00	Ahmed Rezki  Algeria	4.80	Mohamed Bensaad  Algeria	4.80
Long jump	Charlton Ehizuelen  Nigeria	7.92	Fidelis Ndyabagye  Uganda	7.75 NR	Emmanuel Mifetu  Ghana	7.57
Triple jump	Charlton Ehizuelen  Nigeria	16.51	Abdoulaye Diallo  Senegal	16.29	Saïd Saad  Algeria	15.93
Shot put	Youssef Nagui Asaad  Egypt	18.88	Namakoro Niaré  Mali	17.16	Emad Fayez  Egypt	16.93
Discus throw	Namakoro Niaré  Mali	58.02 GR	Abderrazak Ben Hassine  Tunisia	55.74	Tiékité Somet  Côte d'Ivoire	51.86
Hammer throw	Youssef Ben Abid  Tunisia	54.90 GR	Abdellah Boubekeur  Algeria	54.74	Noureddine Bendifallah  Algeria	52.20
Javelin throw	Justin Arop  Uganda	76.94	Ali Memmi  Tunisia	71.28	John Mayaka  Kenya	70.76
Decathlon	Mohamed Bensaad  Algeria	7338	Brown Ebewele  Nigeria	6876	Alain Smaïl  Algeria	6822

Women's events

Event	Gold		Silver		Bronze
100 metres	Hannah Afriyie  Ghana	11.50	Utifon Ufon Oko  Nigeria	11.55	Kemi Sandgodeyi  Nigeria	11.92
200 metres (wind: +0.1 m/s)	Hannah Afriyie  Ghana	23.01	Kehinde Vaughan  Nigeria	23.70	Ruth Waithera  Kenya	23.91
400 metres	Kehinde Vaughan  Nigeria	53.86	Ruth Kyalisima  Uganda	54.49	Georgina Aidou  Ghana	54.84
800 metres	Tekla Chemabwai  Kenya	2:04.84	Sakina Boutamine  Algeria	2:05.64	Célestine N'Drin  Côte d'Ivoire	2:06.08
1500 metres	Sakina Boutamine  Algeria	4:16.43	Anna Kiprop  Kenya	4:19.59	Rose Thomson  Kenya	4:20.07
100 metres hurdles	Judy Bell-Gam  Nigeria	13.67	Ruth Kyalisima  Uganda	13.92 NR	Bella Bell-Gam  Nigeria	13.99
4 × 100 metres relay	Nigeria Utifon Ufon Oko Kemi Sandgodeyi Fosa Ibini Bella Bell-Gam	44.63	Ghana Hannah Afriyie Grace Bakari Jeanette Yawson Jeanette Ofusu	45.19	Uganda Farida Kyakutema Ruth Kyalisima Christine Kabanda Jane Nakamate	46.77
4 × 400 metres relay	Ghana Helena Opoku Grace Bakari Georgina Aidoo Hannah Afriyie	3:35.55 (NR)	Kenya Tekla Chemabwai Rose Tata-Muya Ruth Waithera Charity Muhuhe	3:39.27	Uganda Farida Kyakutema Ruth Kyalisima Margaret Komugisha Jane Nakamate	3:39.94
High jump	Modupe Oshikoya  Nigeria	1.77	Kawther Akrémi  Tunisia	1.73	Emilia Blavo  Ghana	1.68
Long jump	Modupe Oshikoya  Nigeria	6.32	Jeanette Yawson  Ghana	6.29	Bella Bell-Gam  Nigeria	6.12
Shot put	Joyce Aciro  Uganda	14.47 NR	Veronica Baawah  Ghana	12.88	Herina Malit  Kenya	12.70
Discus throw	Fathia Jerbi  Tunisia	46.56	Helen Alyek  Uganda	45.90 NR	Martha Jugah  Nigeria	45.02
Javelin throw	Eunice Nekesa  Kenya	51.58	Agnès Tchuinté  Cameroon	49.16	Constance Rwabiryagye  Uganda	45.52
Pentathlon	Bella Bell-Gam  Nigeria	3709	Margaret Bisereko  Uganda	3788	Madeleine Bonzi  Upper Volta	3427

Medal table

Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	Nigeria	9	6	6	21
2	Kenya	7	7	8	22
3	Algeria	4	5	5	14
4	Ghana	4	3	4	11
5	Uganda	2	7	5	14
6	Tunisia	2	3	0	5
7	Sudan	2	0	0	2
8	Ethiopia	1	1	2	4
	Ivory Coast	1	1	2	4
10	Egypt	1	1	1	3
11	Mali	1	1	0	2
12	Tanzania	1	0	1	2
13	Chad	1	0	0	1
	Eswatini	1	0	0	1
15	Senegal	0	1	1	2
16	Cameroon	0	1	0	1
17	Congo	0	0	1	1
	Upper Volta	0	0	1	1
Totals (18 entries)		37	37	37	111