2023 NCAA outdoor championships: Ezekiel Nathaniel sets sight on 400m hurdles podium

Nigeria’s record holder in the 400m hurdles, Ezekiel Nathaniel will be seeking to make it to the 400m hurdles podium at the 2023 NCAA outdoor track and field
championships after finishing fourth (49.24) in his debut last year.

The then 18 year old had a phenomenal campaign last year headlined by the 48.42 Nigeria record he set to break the 48.50 record Henry Amike set in 1987.

Nathaniel has been close this year to repeating the kind of incredible run he had last year and he is going to the championships holding at the Mike Myers
stadium in Austin, Texas as one of the fastest over the distance in the collegiate circuit.

His 48.52 personal season’s best ranks him in the top five of the fastest 400m hurdlers so far this season in the NCAA and the Nigerian knows a repeat of his
48.42 lifetime best can quarantee him a medal.

If he needs the gold, he will of course need to set a new Nigerian record to out hurdle, as it were, University of Arkansas’ Ayden Owens-Delerme who holds a
personal season and lifetime best of 48.26.

Nathaniel will become the second Nigerian man after Miles Ukaoma (49.23) in 2014 to win the 400m hurdles if he scales the surmountable hurdles in front of
him.

He will also rank among the top African athletes after Ken Harnden of Zimbabwe (48.72) in 1995, Ukaoma and the great Zambian, Samuel Matete (49.12) in 1991 to win the 400m hurdles crown at the championships.

The Nigerian will start his campaign on Wednesday and has been drawn in he third semifinal heat where he will be looking to pick one of the two automatic
tickets that will take him to his second NCAA 400m hurdles final.