By Uzor Odigbo
Nigeria finished high in Douala despite initial setback as the country on Wednesday night, grabbed one more gold medal to end its campaign in third place at the 2024 African Senior Athletics championships in Douala, Cameroon surpassing its achievements two years ago in Mauritius.
Nigeria finished third on the overall medals table at the 2022 edition held in Port Louis, Mauritius with 11 medals made up of five gold, three silver, and three bronze to rank behind Kenya and South Africa.
At the end of hostilities at the Japoma stadium in Douala, Nigeria secured five gold, four silver and four bronze medals.
The nation got most of her medals from the Women athletes, who won a total of four gold, three silver and two bronze.
Their male counterparts got one gold, one silver and two bronze medals.
Two years ago in Mauritius, Team Nigeria saved its best for the last day of competition, winning four medals across both track and field events.
And in Douala, on Wednesday, the women’s 4x400m relay grabbed the gold medal in 3.27.31sec. But it was not enough to qualify for the Olympics in Paris.
Their male counterparts finished 4th in 3 02.93sec.
U.S.-based sprinter Alaba Akintola could not match the speed of his co-competitors in the 200m final, as he finished 6th.
Nigeria’s men javelin thrower, Prosper Chinecherem picked a silver medal in the last event of the Championships with a throw of 79.22m, while Samuel Kure was 4th with a throw of 66.26m.
Among the athletes who defended their title in Douala are Chukwuebuka Enekwechi, who won the men’s Shot Put event. He won the title at Asaba 2018 and retained it in Mauritius 2022.
Women discus thrower, Obiageri Amechi grabbed the gold medal this time around, after she settled for bronze two years ago in Mauritius.
One of Nigeria’s most consistent athletes, Ese Brume, did not disappoint, as she retained her gold medal title in Douala.
Nigeria’s Women 4x100m squad, led by Tobi Amusan secured a gold medal in Douala.
One major setback Nigeria had in Douala was Amusan’s inability to defend her women’s 100m hurdles due to illness.
Nigeria was hoping to grab two gold medals in the women’s 100m and 200m, but it was dashed after the U.S.-based sprinter Favour Ofili pulled out of the Championships without the consent of the technical officials.
Record breaking Temitope Adeshina, lost the gold to her Ghanaian challengers in the high jump event. She had grabbed the silver medals two years ago in Mauritius.
When Nigeria hosted the event in 2018 in Asaba, Delta State, it also finished third.
