Making of Champions

All six Nigerian athletes that were entered for the men and women’s 100m sailed through the heats and semis on Day 1 of the African Senior Athletics Championships in Marrakech, Morocco, to qualify for the final of the event on Monday night

In the women’s semis, Lawreta Ozoh who only returned to action after observing a two year ban, and is competing in the individual 100m for the first time since her return, took third in the first semi with 11.58s. The Commonwealth Games Silver Medallist (in the 4x100m) went against World Championships Double Silver Medallist, Murielle Ahouré who took the heat with 11.19s, the fastest time in the semis.

Commonwealth double gold medallist, Blessing Okagbare won Heat 2 with 11.20s to set up an exciting encounter with the Ivorian in today’s final. Gloria Asumnu placed third in 11.44s. Another Ivorian, Ta Lou Gonezie also secured a place in the last eight with 11.25s, as she came second behind Okagbare. Monday’s race therefore will promises to be a Nigeria versus Cote d’Ivoire affair, which will no doubt set the tracks of the Grande de Stade Marrakech alight, and perhaps, send some records tumbling.

Commonwealth Games finalist, Mark Jelks ran the fastest time in the Semis of the men’s 100 metres and now looks favoured to clinch his first African title. Jelks easily dominated the race, and even had enough time to look behind and gauge his opponents’ speed as he crossed the finish line. The Nigerian champion breasted the tape in 10.16s, beating South Africa’s Akani Simbine to first place in Heat 2. However he has to watch out for Cote d’Ivoire’s Wilfried Koffi Hua who won Heat 1 in 10.17s, and was followed by Monzavous Edward who came second in 10.38s. Ogho-Oghene Egwero was second in Heat 3 in 10.37s, in a photo finish with South Africa’s Simon Magakwe who won it in 10.36s.

Nichole Denby looks good enough for gold in the women’s 100m hurdles, having won Heat 1 (13.20s) ahead of Senegal’s Gnima Faye (13.45s) and Rikenette Steenkamp (13.47s) of South Africa. Heat 2 threw up a surprise in the person of Lindsay Weyinme who competed for Nigeria and was second with 13.39s behind Cote d’ Ivoire’s Rosvitha Bodjiho Okou who led with 13.18s. Conspicuously missing was Ugonna Ndu who was expected to make an appearance at the African Championships for the first time.

Noah Akwu was the sole Nigerian qualifier for the Semis of the men’s 400m, having finished ninth out of the 26 athletes that competed in the heats. He was second in Heat 2 with 46.88s as Botswana’s Onakabets Nkobolo took the lead with 46.78s. In fact all three semis were won by Botswana; Pako Seribe sailed to victory in Heat 1 while African Record Holder, Isaac Makwala sealed the deal in Heat 3 with the fastest time of 45.87s. A Botswana 1-2-3 would not be out of place going by this scenario.

Unfortunately, one of Nigeria’s new American recruits, Robert Simmons was disqualified for a false start in his 2nd race for Team Nigeria, after also not having completed his heat at the Commonwealth Games, where he pulled up injured after 200 metres. He’s not had the best start to his Nigeria career, and some might say that he has not justified his inclusion in the team, after not having competed in the Nigerian Trials in Calabar in June. Current Nigerian Champion Isah Salihu finished 4th is his heat in 47.12s, and 17th in the final rankings, thereby narrowly missing out on the last fastest losers’ spot in the Semis.

Queen Obisesan missed out a place on the podium as she finished fourth in the women’s hammer throw with 59.99m while Stephen Mozia also experienced the same dilemma in the men’s shot put event with 17.65m. The second Nigerian interest in the shot put, Augustine Nwoye took seventh position with 16.90m in his debut at the African Championships.

Just two months ago, the name Mark Jelks was largely unheard of in Nigeria, but that was before he arrived in Calabar for the National Athletics Championships in June. That was where Jelks announced his arrival as Nigeria’s new fastest man, as he completely dominated the field on his way to winning the highly coveted men’s 100 metres title. On that occasion, Jelks beat former Champions Ogho-Oghene Egwero and Obinna Metu in dominant fashion, as it became clear that over the next couple of years, he will likely be the athlete to beat as far as the men’s 100m on the home front is concerned!

In just a few days from now, Jelks will once more stand a strong chance of winning his first African title when the 19th African Senior Championships get underway in Marrakech, Morocco. The newly converted Nigerian athlete will take on his second assignment in the green and white colours, straight from the Commonwealth Games where he put up a commendable effort in his first outing for the world’s most populous black nation.

He won his 100m heat in 10.28s, beating the Commonwealth’s fastest man this year (Richard Thompson) in the process, and was eventually the only African representative in the final where he finished fifth in an SB of 10.13s. In the 4x100m heats, he even had the audacity to stare down the world’s fastest man himself, Usain Bolt, as they crossed the finish line together!

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That said, in terms of  times, Jelks comes to Morocco as the fifth on the African 100m list this season, behind South Africa’s duo of Simon Magakwe (9.98s) and Akani Simbine (10.02s), Gerald Phiri of Zambia (10.03s) and Zimbabwe’s Gabriel Mvumvure (10.07s). Despite their top spots in the rankings, neither of the South African pair qualified for the Commonwealth 100m final, as Magakwe could only manage 7th place in the semis, while Simbine placed 4th in the semis with 10.21s.

Can the Southern Africans bounce back at these African Championships, or will Jelks once again prove the man of the moment, and add the African crown to his Nigerian Title? It would certainly be an interesting story if Jelks wins, given the controversy that has followed the athletes that bloggers are popularly calling the “Naijamericans” since their switches of allegiances from Team USA to Nigeria. 

It would no doubt be of some significance if Jelks or one of his Nigerian teammates make the podium – as in the Commonwealth Games, Monzavous Edwards and Egwero are mostly likely to complete the trio for the individual 100 meteres. Despite Nigeria’s historical dominance of the sprints at the African Championships, no Nigerian has reached the podium in the 100 metres since the 2008 edition, when Olusoji Fasuba and Uchenna Emedolu were the GOLD and Silver medallists. Jelks is looking the most likely man to break that barren run in Marrakesh!

Men’s 100m Schedule: August 10th – Round 1 @ 10am, Semis @ 8.25pm, August 11th – Final @ 6.10pm.

(NB: This program is liable to change according to the number of participants and the local conditions)

Exactly a week ago this morning, Nigeria won it’s very first Athletics medal at the just concluded Commonwealth Games, a Bronze in the F42/44 Men’s Discus Throw by Richard Okigbazi. The F42 and F44 classifications are for Athletes with single leg amputations (above or below the knee respectively) or similar leg impairments. As the Commonwealth Games drew to a close yesterday for another 4 years, we felt  it important to shed more light on the amazing feat of Richard Okigbazi winning this Bronze medal, especially considering that it was ONE of only TWO medals Nigeria’s men won in Track & Field! Here is a fan-made clip of him throwing:

What makes his feat even more impressive is that, while most competitors in this category used their prosthetic legs to compete, Okigbazi threw balanced on just one leg, and as can be seen from the video above, throws his leg support away just before making the throw! One blogger even called it one of the most incredible sporting things they had ever seen! Okigbazi was able to generate enough power to launch the discuss an whopping 39.38 metres, which was enough to grab him the Bronze! When the F42 and F44 classes are combined, a points system was used to calculate the medal placements:

Having gotten to experience singing the National Anthem THREE times in a packed Hampden Park in Glasgow last week (for GOLD medals in women’s 100m, 200m and Long Jump), there is one certain line which resonated very well with onlookers in the crowd as we belted out each line with immense pride at being Nigerian: “The Labour of our heroes past shall never be in vain!” Let’s make sure that the labour of Richard Okigbazi in doing Nigeria proud at the Commonwealth Games, and the labour of all our Para-Athletes past and present shall never be in vain.

The Labours of our Para-Athletes must not be forgotten. Richard Okigbazi won BRONZE
by throwing 39.38 metres in the F42/44 Discus – THROWING ON JUST ONE LEG!
(Photo Credit: mitheringsfrommorningside.wordpress.com)

Nigeria’s Richard Okigbazi during the Men’s Para Sport Discus Throw F42/F44
(Photo Credit: AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

While our able-bodied athletes were not able to get a single medal at the London 2012 Olympics, our Paralympians won TWELVE medals in all – SIX GOLD, FIVE Silver & ONE Bronze, but they don’t get nearly as much praise or recognition for the feats they achieve in the face of great adversity. Let’s celebrate them and continue supporting them, financially and otherwise, to continue putting Nigeria on the map globally! Share this story with someone today, to inspire them to greatness despite whatever challenges they may face. CONGRATULATIONS Richard Okigbazi, COMMONWEALTH BRONZE MEDALLIST! Onwards and upwards to Rio!

(L-R) Silver medallist Aled Davies of Wales, GOLD medallist Dan Greaves of England and Bronze medallist Richard Okigbazi of Nigeria for F42/44 Discus at 2014 Commonwealth Games!
(Photo Credit: Julian Finney/Getty)

Silver: Aled Davies (Wales), GOLD; Dan Greaves (England), Bronze: Richard Okigbazi (Nigeria)
(Photo Credit: Julian Finney/Getty)