Nigeria had five athletes competing on Day 4 of the IAAF World Championships taking place at the Olympic Stadium in London.
Tosin Oke who was a late inclusion into the Nigerian Team was drawn in Group B of the men’s Triple Jump qualification. The African Champion who was looking to make it back to back finals for himself didn’t register a jump in his first attempt.
Oke, nevertheless, hopped, stepped and jumped a distance of 16.14m in his second attempt, before improving his third attempt by 3cm. The two jumps however, were not enough for the 36-year old to make it through as he finished 12th in his pool and 25th overall.
After watching her younger brother Samson Nathaniel exit the men’s 400m in the heats, Glory Nathaniel carried the hopes of the Nathaniels on her shoulder.
Running in Lane 2 in the final heat of the women’s 400m Hurdles, Nathaniel had a blistering start. She kept the pace up, leading the pack until around the home straight. She began to tire as the likes of Rhonda Whyte of Jamaica and Lea Sprunger of Switzerland caught up with her.
However, she was able to hang on as she finished 3rd in 55.30s, which was a new Personal Best (PB) for her. The women’s semis come up on Tuesday, August 8th.
Meanwhile, the quarter mile trio of Patience Okon George, Yinka Ajayi and Margaret Bamgbose failed to advance to the women’s 400m final.
Okon George had to settle for a semifinal finish once again as she placed 7th in 52.60s. Shaunae Miller-Uibo won the race in 50.10s.
Ajayi on her part placed 6th, crossing the line in 52.10s in Heat 2 which was won by Nigerian-born Bahraini athlete Salwa Eid Naser who stormed to a second consecutive National Record (NR) in as many days, setting a new mark of 50.08s to finish ahead of defending champion Allyson Felix.
Bamgbose who ran a Season’s Best (SB) during her heat, couldn’t keep up with the rest of the field and settled for 8th position in Heat 3, running a time of 52.23s.
