In Part 1 of this series, we looked at the exploits of some of Nigeria’s top male sprinters, starting from Nos. 10 – 6. In Part 2, we’re going to highlight the Top 5 Nigerian Male Sprinters of 2024, each of whom attained important milestones, won medals, and set the stage for even bigger things ahead.
5. Chidi Okezie
Over the years, Chidi Okezie has remained steady, persistent, and impactful. His quest for a continental title finally came to fruition in 2024 as he clinched GOLD in the men’s 400m at the African Games in Accra, Ghana. His performance was a Personal Best – 45.06s – and made him the first Nigerian man to win the African Games 400m crown since Innocent Egbunike in 1987.
As the summer rolled in, Okezie stepped up to international competition. At the World Athletics Relays in the Bahamas, he played a pivotal role in helping the men’s 4x400m and mixed 4x400m teams secure qualification for the Paris Olympics. The men’s 4x400m squad comprising Okezie, Dubem Nwachukwu, Dubem Amene and Sikiru Adeyemi clocked a time of 3:01.70, the team’s fastest time in 20 years.
One of the key highlights of his season came in June when Okezie broke the 45s barrier with a new PB of 44.97s at Foote Field in Edmonton, Canada. He made the 400m semis at the African Championships in Douala and competed in the 400m and men’s 4x400m at the Paris Olympics.
4. Kayinsola Ajayi
Kayinsola Ajayi kicked off the year with a strong indoor season, winning GOLD in the men’s 60m at the SEC Championships in February, and his indoor success quickly led to a breakout outdoor season.
At the NCAA Championships in June, Ajayi improved his lifetime best to 10.01s to win Bronze in the 100m final, and also helped his team win GOLD the 4x100m relay with a blistering 38.03s. He returned to Nigeria for the Olympic Trials and stormed to victory with 10.14s, securing his first national title which earned him a place at the African Championships where he settled for fourth, and then anchored the men’s 4x100m team to a Silver medal.
Ajayi hit a major milestone at the Spitzen Leichtathletik Meet in Luzern, racing to a PB of 10.00s. At the Paris Olympics, he made an unforgettable debut when he stunned defending champion Marcell Jacobs to win his heat in 10.02s and made it to the semis of the Games. He also featured in the men’s 4x100m in Paris.
3. Favour Ashe
Favour Ashe who is one of Nigeria’s promising sprinters, opened his season with a bang at the Pepsi Florida Relays when he ran 9.99s in the 100m, marking him as the first man in 2024 to break the 10s barrier globally and qualifying him for the Paris Olympics.
At the NCAA East First Rounds, the former Nigerian Champion sprinted to a new Personal Best (PB) of 9.94s to win the semis. He followed that up with a 9.99s performance at the NCAA Championships, inspiring Auburn to a 2-3 finish as he placed 2nd, with teammate Kayinsola Ajayi taking the Bronze. Ashe made his Olympics debut in Paris, making it to the semis of the men’s 100m. With three sub-10s runs under his belt this season, Ashe has now recorded the most sub-10s runs by a Nigerian man over 100m (six times).
2. Ezekiel Nathaniel
Nathaniel kicked off the year in the indoor arenas, making an immediate impact. At the Corky Classic in January, he broke the 5-year-old NCAA 600-yard record of 1:07.67s formerly held by Roshon Roomes to win the event in 1:07.44s ahead of LSU’s Sean Burrell (1:08.23s).
When outdoor season arrived, Nathaniel was ready to take on tougher competition. In April 2024 while competing at the Tom Jones Invitational in Florida, he outdid himself by racing to a new Personal Best (PB), National Record and School Record, clocking an impressive 48.29s to earn automatic qualification for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The following month, he made waves at the Big 12 Championships where he clinched the 400m hurdles title with a stunning lifetime best and Nigerian Record of 48.00s, which was also a Meet Record and Facility Record.
At the Paris 2024 Olympics, Nathaniel ran 48.38s to place 2nd in his heat and advance to the semifinals, becoming the first Nigerian athlete in 12 years to reach the semifinals of the 400m hurdles at the Olympics.
1. Samuel Ogazi
Samuel Ogazi has the kind of talent that promises big things for Nigerian Athletics. In 2024, he led the charge in the Nigerian quartermile sector. Ogazi started the outdoor season by clocking a new Personal Best (PB) of 45.35s in Baton Rouge. He improved his time to 45.29s at the Tom Jones Invitational a few weeks later and then played a vital role in helping the mixed 4x400m team qualify for the Paris Olympics as they clocked a then African Record 3:12.87 at the World Relays in The Bahamas.
Returning to the collegiate circuit, Ogazi did something astounding at the SEC Outdoor Championships. He blazed to a jaw dropping PB of 44.58s, which was the fastest time ever run by a Nigerian male quartermiler in 37 years, leapfrogging him to 2nd on the Nigerian all time list * and automatically punching his Olympic ticket. In addition, he became the first Nigerian quartermiler to run a sub-45s since Orukpe Erayokan in 2015.
He won the NCAA East Regionals in a new PB of 44.53s to secure his Outdoor NCAA Championships ticket in the event he missed out indoors. He went on to place 2nd in a PB of 44.52s, earning a first team All-American honours. In June, at his debut African Championships in Douala, Ogazi took the Bronze medal.
His biggest test came at the Paris Olympics but Ogazi forged ahead, qualifying for the semifinals with a new lifetime best of 44.50s, finishing 2nd in his heat. He then lowered his time to 44.41s in the semis and placed 3rd, qualifying for the final in one of the non-automatic spots, becoming the first Nigerian male in 36 years to reach an Olympic 400m final! He would finish 7th in the final in one of the greatest 400m races in Olympic history.
*On paper, Emmanuel Bamidele is second on the Nigerian all-time list with his lifetime best of 44.24s set in 2023. However, the Nigerian-born athlete has been unable to complete his switch to Qatar and doesn’t compete for Nigeria internationally.
