5. Uhunoma Osazuwa
By now a lot of Athletics fans in the country will already be getting used to the name Uhunoma Osazuwa, seeing that she has been consistent in booking a spot in our Top list each year. This is because she’s always up there in the mix, breaking her own National Record (NR) every year.
It’s a tough task to compete in one event, but when you’re able to combine seven events conveniently and still find a way of setting a Championship Record (CR) in the process, such an outstanding feat cannot go unrecognized.
Osazuwa became the African Heptathlon Champion on a record-breaking note, scoring a CR and NR of 6153 points in Durban, which was a feat that saw her surpass her previous NR and Personal Best (PB) of 6106 points.
Although her new PB was 47 points shy of the Olympic qualifying mark, mother luck was on her side to still compete in Rio. The African Champion received a wild card from the World Athletics ruling body, IAAF, as her points were ranked among the world’s Top 20, excluding those that had already met the Olympic standard.
The two-time Olympian might not have had the best of outings at the Games, but her CR in Durban makes her sit on our No.5 position.
Huge congratulations to all the athletes. A massive well done to Divine Oduduru and Ese Brume. May God help you both and of course the other athletes mentioned and not mentioned to soar even higher in 2017. God bless you all. Amen!