Nigerian athlete and world record holder Tobi Amusan has secured her spot in the 100-meter hurdles at the ongoing World Athletics Championships in Budapest, News About Nigeria reports.
Amusan is one of the country’s athletes making waves at the global tournament going on in Hungary.
Despite a slow start, Amusan dipped at the last moment to clinch victory in her semifinal with a time of 12.56 seconds. She faced tough competition from athletes like America’s Masai Russell and Hungary’s Luca Kozak.
The reigning world champion will now aim to defend her World title in the final, hoping for a repeat of her success last year in Oregon, United States.
In another event, Alaba Akintola, a U.S.-based Nigeria sprinter, qualified for the second round of the 200 meters. He finished third in Heat Seven with a time of 20.45 seconds, securing his spot after France’s Ryan Zeze was disqualified.
Favour Ofili, another U.S.-based athlete, achieved success by securing a spot in the 200-meter semifinals. Her time of 22.66 seconds in the first round made her one of the six non-automatic qualifiers.
Ofili, who holds Nigeria’s 200-meter indoor and outdoor records, faces a challenging semifinal draw against top-class athletes in the tournament.
Last year, the 20-year-old exited the event at the semifinal stage after running 22.30 seconds to finish third.
Ofili is now the sixth Nigerian athlete to reach the semifinals of this event, following in the footsteps of notable athletes like Mary Onyali, Fatimah Yusuf, Mercy Nku, Blessing Okagbare, and Rosemary Chukwuma.
Meanwhile, Amusan and other Nigerian athletes who advanced to the finals will now hope to put up an impression in the next stage of the competition today.
