List of Famous people born in Free State, South Africa

Willem Jackson is a retired South African footballer who played as defender. A fullback capable of lining up on either flank, he played mostly for Bloemfontein Celtic and Orlando Pirates.

Isabella Winkie Direko was a South African politician born in the Free State province of South Africa. She was a member of the African National Congress and served as Premier of the Free State from 1999 to 2004.

Reinardt Janse van Rensburg is a South African professional road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam Team Qhubeka Assos. He previously rode for Dutch UCI ProTeam Argos–Shimano. He is no relation to fellow professional cyclist Jacques Janse van Rensburg.

Elme de Villiers is a South African female badminton player.

Mosiuoa Gerard Patrick Lekota is a South African politician, who currently serves as the President and Leader of the Congress of the People since 16 December 2008.

Jacobus Hercules de la Rey, better known as Koos de la Rey, was a South African military officer who served as a Boer general during the Second Boer War. De la Rey also had a political career and was one of the leading advocates of Boer independence.

Ernest Leonard Johnson (1891–1977) was a South African astronomer and a former staff member of the Union Observatory in Johannesburg, South Africa. He is known for the discovery of 18 asteroids between 1946–1951, as well as several comets. On 25 August 1949, he discovered 48P/Johnson, a periodic comet expected to pass no closer than 1.2 to 1.3 AU from our planet in 2025. Johnson received the "Donohoe Comet Medal" twice before retiring in 1956. He died in 1977.