FIVE members of Team Nigeria athletics will be running today file out in search of semi-final tickets in four different events.
They will be running in the men’s 400m hurdles, men’s 400m Repechage, women’s 400m and men’s 200m.
Ezekiel Nathaniel will be the first to step on the track by 9:29 am in the men’s 400m hurdles. On the 11th of May this year, the 21-year-old Nathaniel ran 48.00 seconds.
Chidi Okezie, who could not make the 400m semi-finals list on Sunday, has a second chance in the repechage this morning by 10:28 am to do so. Already Samuel Ogazi is through to the semi-finals in a time of 44.50 seconds.
However, the introduction of the repechage round has injected a fresh wave of hope for athletes like Okezie. This innovative round, which translates to “second chance” in French, offers competitors another opportunity to advance to the semi-finals. The repechage round is making its debut at the Olympics for track events ranging from 200 meters to 1500 meters, including the hurdles.
“This new repechage round is a game-changer,” said Chidi Okezie. “It gives us another shot to show our best performance, and I’m determined to make the most of it. The support from my team and country keeps me motivated.”
The repechage round is designed to enhance the fairness and excitement of the competition, ensuring that athletes who may have had an off day still have a shot at redemption. For Chidi Okezie, this means a renewed opportunity to prove his mettle and aim for a place in the semifinals.
All eyes will be on Ella Onojuvwevwo in Heat 3 and Esther Elo Joseph in Heat 4 in the women’s 400m. Ella Onojuvwevwo and Esther Elo Joseph will need to run below 51 seconds to stand a chance of going beyond the heats.
The last member of Team Nigeria athletics who will be on the track on Monday evening is 200m specialist Udodi Chudi Onwuzurike.
The 21-year-old sprinter will be running in Heat 4 at about 7 pm Nigerian time.
The American-born sprinter first represented Nigeria at the 2021 World Junior Athletics Championship in Nairobi where he won the 200m gold.
Before the Nigeria National Trails in Benin City, Edo State, in June this year, this is what a very elated Udodi Chudi Onwuzurike said; “I thank God every day. I’m truly blessed for being a world junior champion, an NCAA champion and hopefully an Olympic champion. It’s a really promising career for me.”
Meanwhile, the wrestling event at the 2024 Summer Games starts today, and Nigeria’s Tokyo 2020 silver medalist and World number 2, Blessing Oborududu, will be stepping on the mat in the 68kg category.
The twelve-time African champion and 2022 Commonwealth Games gold medallist has a date to keep with Canada’s Linda Morais, whom she defeated in Birmingham two years ago to win the precious medal – gold for Nigeria.
The Women’s Freestyle 68kg quarter-final fight comes up by 2:35 pm today.
In May 2024, Linda Morais, 31, qualified for the Paris Games by earning the last quota spot available at the 2024 World Wrestling Olympic Qualification Tournament in Istanbul, Turkey.
She defeated Alexandra Anghel of Romania in her Olympic wrestle-off match.
Blessing Oborududu, born on the 12th of March 1989, in Gbanranu, Bayelsa State, is currently ranked as the world’s number two woman wrestler in her weight category and also the first wrestler to win an Olympic medal representing Nigeria at the Tokyo Olympics.
She is also a twelve-time African champion from 2010 to 2023.
Eighteen-Eleven Media