Sports
Paris 2024: Ajayi Shatters Nigerian Record, Advances To 100m Semifinals
Nigeria’s Kanyinsola Ajayi has made headlines at the 2024 Paris Olympics by securing a spot in the men’s 100m semifinals event.
Ajayi clinched victory in heat 5 with an impressive time of 10.02 seconds, setting a new record for the fastest opening round time by a Nigerian, surpassing Davidson Ezinwa’s previous mark of 10.03 seconds.
The 19-year-old Ajayi outpaced Olympic champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs of Italy, who finished second with a time of 10.05 seconds, and Ghana’s Abdul-Rasheed Saminu, who took third place with 10.06 seconds.
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Ajayi, with a personal best of 10.00 seconds, is closing in on the coveted sub-10 second mark.
Fellow Nigerian Favour Ashe, also a student at Auburn University in the USA, secured a spot in the semifinals after finishing fourth in his heat with a time of 10.16 seconds.
Ashe’s progression was confirmed as a non-automatic qualifier.
In other notable performances, Jamaica’s Oblique Seville won heat 4 with a time of 9.99 seconds, while Great Britain’s Louie Hinchliffe set the pace with the fastest time of the competition so far, winning heat 3 in 9.98 seconds.
Despite an unanticipated run, Noah Lyles advanced to the semifinals, finishing second in his heat behind Hinchliffe.
Ajayi and Ashe will compete in the semifinals alongside top athletes such as South Africa’s Akani Simbine and USA’s Kenny Bednarek, who also won their respective heats.
At the previous Tokyo Olympics, Nigeria’s Enoch Adegoke advanced to the 100m final with a time of 10.00 seconds, finishing second in semi-final 2.
For the first time in 25 years, a Nigerian male athlete has advanced to the 100m final at the Olympic Games.
On Sunday, Nigerian athletes Kanyinsola Ajayi and Favour Ashe will face strong competition in their respective semifinal heats. Ajayi, competing in heat 2, will go up against a formidable field that includes Letsile Tebogo of Botswana, Akani Simbine of South Africa, and Kenneth Bednarek of the USA.
Ashe, meanwhile, will tackle a challenging lineup in his heat, featuring Noah Lyles of the USA, Oblique Seville of Jamaica, Louie Hinchliffe of Great Britain, Emmanuel Eseme of Cameroon, and Benjamin Azamati of Ghana.
Both Ajayi and Ashe will need to deliver exceptional performances to advance to the final and aim for a podium finish, matching the achievement of Enoch Adegoke from the previous Olympics.
The Ayomidiran Foundation, under the leadership of Hon Ayo Omidiran, has appointed four prominent women as ambassadors for its “Girls Play Sports” initiative, aimed at inspiring young girls to excel in sports.
The initiative has brought together Ayisat Yusuf, a former Super Falcons player and current sponsor of Ayisat Yusuf Football Club; Mary Onyali, a celebrated silver-winning Olympic sprinter; Onome Ebi, who represented Nigeria in five FIFA Women’s World Cups and captained the Super Falcons in several international competitions; and Olufunke Oshonaike, a six-time Olympic table tennis player who has won numerous medals for Nigeria.
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On the rationale for their appointment, Hon Omidiran asserted that ‘these accomplished athletes, known for their dedication and excellence, are role models for girls across Nigeria’.
The grand finale of the inaugural Girls Play Sports football tournament will take place in Abuja on September 29, 2024, where the ambassadors will participate in celebrating female athletic achievements and encouraging more girls to embrace sports.
The foundation also plans to expand the initiative to include sports like table tennis, basketball, and athletics in the future.
“We are honoured to have these sports legends on board,” said Hon Omidiran.
“Their success and passion for sports will inspire a new generation of female athletes, promoting empowerment through sports,” he added.
Arsenal captain Martin Ødegaard will be sidelined for an extended period due to an ankle injury he sustained during international duty with Norway.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta announced this on Wednesday.
Ødegaard twisted his ankle in Norway’s Nations League match against Austria earlier this month.
The national team doctor initially estimated that Ødegaard would be out for at least three weeks.
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However, recent scans have revealed ligament damage, leading Arteta to acknowledge the injury’s seriousness.
Arteta said, “The scans showed some damage, especially to one of the ligaments in the ankle. While I can’t provide an exact timeframe, it is significant, and we’ll miss him for a while. We’re hopeful it won’t be for months, but we’ll see.”
Arsenal, who were Premier League runners-up last season, will face Manchester City, the reigning champions, on Sunday.
The Gunners are currently second in the Premier League after a 1-0 win over Tottenham, trailing City by two points.
Nigeria’s Junior D’Tigress secured a thrilling 71-67 victory over Uganda on Friday, advancing to the final of the FIBA U18 Women’s AfroBasket 2024.
The closely contested semifinal took place at Pretoria University in South Africa.
With this win, Nigeria also earned a spot in the FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup 2025 in Czechia, alongside Mali, who dominated Cameroon with a 103-45 win in the other semifinal earlier that day.
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Despite Uganda defeating Nigeria in the Group Phase, the Nigerians turned the tables in this semifinal, claiming sweet revenge.
Nigeria, who last won silver in 2010, had only won one Group Phase game, a resounding 107-30 victory over Zimbabwe.
However, they managed to advance as one of the two best third-place finishers and made the most of their second chance.
In the quarterfinals, Nigeria faced Egypt, a team they lost to 72-60 in the group stage. However, the West Africans bounced back, defeating the Pharaohs 66-51 to secure their semifinal berth.
While Nigeria, led by coach Juliana Ojoshogu Negedu, fought hard to overcome Uganda, coach Omondi of Uganda was focused on earning a spot on the podium for the first time in the tournament’s history.
Nigeria entered the match with a statistical edge, thanks to standout offensive contributions from Idubamo Beggi and Abigail Isaac.
Uganda responded with notable performances from Resty Nanangwe, Modesta Anyango, and Mia Belinda.
In the final on Saturday (tomorrow), Nigeria will take on Mali, seeking to redeem their men’s team’s previous quarterfinal loss to the same West African rival.
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