World record holder, Tobi Amusan, has won Nigeria’s first gold medal at the ongoing African Athletics Championships after storming to victory in the women’s 100m hurdles final on Wednesday, PUNCH Online reports.
Her compatriot and US-based hurdler, Adaobi Tabugbo, also finished third in the event to win her first individual medal for Nigeria, while Ashley Miller prevented the Nigerians from securing a 1-2 finish.
The official time for the final had yet to be released as of press time, as the organisers had been battling a series of challenges, including a dysfunctional timing system, absence of live results, incomplete results without wind readings, and inconsistent disqualifications, drawing criticism from athletes and observers.
However, Amusan dominated the event in the heats and semi-finals with the fastest times before capping her performance with victory in the final.
The hurdlers’ feat takes Nigeria’s medal count to four ahead of the finals of the men’s and women’s 100m later on Wednesday evening.
On Tuesday, Nigeria opened its campaign at the 24th African Senior Athletics Championships with two medals on the opening day, as Divine Oladipo and Obiageri Amaechi won silver and bronze respectively in the women’s discus event.
Making her first international appearance for Nigeria following her switch from Great Britain, Oladipo marked the occasion with a silver-medal finish, while Amaechi completed Nigeria’s podium presence with bronze.
By: Abiodun Adewale
