Festus Abu
Nigeria were dealt a huge blow at the 2017 World Athletics Championships after their best hope for a metal disk at the athletics showpiece Blessing Okagbare crashed out in the semifinal of the women’s 100m in London on Sunday.
The 28-year-old Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games double sprint champion, who competed in the third heat, placed fourth.
Okagbare, who arrived in London with a season’s best of 10.99, was tipped to make it to the final but the United States-based sprinter ran a disappointing 11.08.
USA’s Tori Bowie (10.91), Ivory Coast’s Murielle Ahoure (10.99) and Trinidad and Tobago’sMichelle-Lee Ahye (11.04) made it to the final from the group. Bowie progressed to win the title after running 10.85 ahead of Ivory Coast’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou (10.86). Okagbare failed to reach the final of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games after running 11.09 in the semifinal.
The Beijing 2008 Olympics long jump bronze medallist, who won silver in long jump and bronze in 200m in her second appearance at the worlds in Moscow in 2013, will now shift her attention to the long jump, which begins on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, three Nigerians – Patience Okon-George, Yinka Ajayi and Margaret Bamigbose – will attempt to crack the women’s 400m final when they compete in the semis at the Olympic Stadium on Monday.
But each of the women must run inside 50 seconds to realise her dreams of reaching the final at the global championship for the first time.
Okon-George, Ajayi and Bamgbose are the second Nigerian quartermiler trio to qualify for the semifinal of the worlds after Folasade Abugan, Sorina Nwachukwu and Amaka Ogoegbunam in Berlin in 2009.
Okon-George came second in Heat 5 behind USA’s Quanera Hayes in 51.83 while Ajayi (51.58) and Bamgbose (51.57) came third in their respective heats.
Ajayi, who is making her debut in the London championships, will run in the second semis against defending champion USA’s Allyson Felix, the Jamaican Shericka Jackson and Novlene Williams-Mills, as well as 2015 World Youth Championships winner Salwa Eid Naser of Bahrain.
Bamgbose faces USA’S Phyllis Francis, the only athlete in her heat who has run inside 50 seconds (49.96) this season, Great Britain’s Zoey Clark, Zambia’s Kabange Mupopo and former world champion Amantle Monthso of Botswana.
Falilat Ogunkoya and Fatimah Yusuf are the only Nigerians who have reached the final of the event.
Also, Glory Onome and triple jumper Tosin Oke will be in action on Monday.
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