Amusan, Ajayi Headline Nigeria’s Charge For $150,000 World Ultimate Championships Prize
Sprint hurdler and former world record holder Tobi Amusan and Nigeria’s emerging sprint sensation Kanyinsola Ajayi will spearhead the country’s challenge for the $150,000 top prize in each track and field discipline they will contest at the inaugural World Ultimate Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
Amusan, who missed out on reclaiming her Diamond League title in Brussels last weekend, will have more than the prize money on her mind when she lines up in the women’s 100m hurdles.
The 29-year-old will also have an opportunity to reclaim the world record she lost to American Masai Russell last month at the Weltklasse meeting in Zurich.
Amusan is one of 16 athletes confirmed for the event and will once again face Russell, the Olympic and Diamond League champion who has emerged as the Nigerian’s biggest rival this season.
The Budapest showdown could provide Amusan with another opportunity to restore her status at the top of the event.
Ajayi, meanwhile, will be looking to underline his emergence as one of the biggest sprint sensations in the world when he contests the men’s 100m.
The 21-year-old Nigerian stunned the established order with Diamond League victories in Eugene and London and will be determined to demonstrate that those performances, as well as his NCAA indoor and outdoor title triumphs, were no fluke.
Also expected to compete in Budapest is Commonwealth 400m hurdles champion Nathaniel Ezekiel, who will be eager to erase the memory of his disappointing outing at the Diamond League Final in Brussels.
Ezekiel finished last in Brussels after going into the race as one of the athletes expected to challenge for a podium place, with Alison dos Santos among the leading contenders.
The Nigerian will now be looking to prove that his performance in Brussels was merely an off day.
Former World U20 champion Udodi Onwuzurike is another Nigerian listed among the qualifiers, this time in the men’s 200m. However, the sprinter will need a significant return to form to challenge for honours, having not broken the 20-second barrier since clocking 19.76 seconds in 2023.
In the women’s 400m, Ella Onojuvwevwo will carry Nigeria’s hopes as she continues to establish herself as one of the country’s brightest prospects in the event.
The 21-year-old has been touted as a potential successor to Falilat Ogunkoya and a future challenger to the long-standing African record of 49.10 seconds.
Onojuvwevwo has already made significant progress, running 50.28 seconds to break the Nigerian indoor record of 50.73 seconds, which had stood in Charity Opara’s name since 1998.
Nigeria will also be represented in the mixed 4x100m relay, adding another opportunity for the country to challenge for honours at the inaugural championships.
However, two of Nigeria’s biggest stars will be missing from the event. World-leading 400m runner Samuel Ogazi is out after what appears to have been a season-ending Commonwealth Games campaign in Glasgow, where he won gold.
Favour Ofili, Nigeria’s leading female sprinter, will also miss the championships because of the unresolved nationality issue that has affected her eligibility.
