Ashe, Chukwuma, Ogundiran Headline Nigeria’s Squad for World Relays
The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) has announced a 24-man squad for the World Athletics Relays scheduled for May 2-3 in Gaborone, Botswana, with sprint stars Favour Ashe, Rosemary Chukwuma and Blessing Ogundiran headlining the team.
The list is a deliberate blend of seasoned campaigners and emerging talents as Nigeria prepares to contest all six relay events.
Tokyo 2020 Olympic finalist Enoch Adegoke, reigning African Games 400m champion Chidi Okezie, and veteran quarter-miler Patience Okon George are among the experienced names expected to anchor the squad.
New faces such as Miracle Ezechukwu, who impressed at the MTN Champs in Jos with 11,26 and 22,91 in the 100m and 200m respectively, and Jacinta Lawrence, the youngest member of the team.
Nigeria’s men’s 4×100m team will be spearheaded by Ashe, who looks to have abandoned a move to switch allegiance to Qatar, alongside Adegoke and rising sprinter Tejiri Godwin.
On the women’s side, Ogundiran’s recent sub-11 second performance (10.98) makes her one of the standout athletes to watch.
The federation confirmed Nigeria will compete in the men’s and women’s 4×100m and 4×400m relays, as well as the mixed 4×100m and 4×400m events.
Despite missing NCAA-based stars such as Samuel Ogazi, Ella Onojuvwevwo, and world hurdles record holder Tobi Amusan, the AFN believes the selected athletes can reaffirm Nigeria’s reputation as a global relay powerhouse.
As well as World Relays titles, teams will be racing for qualification for both the 2026 World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest and the 2027 World Athletics Championships in Beijing.
There are qualification opportunities on both days of competition in Gaborone. Six teams in both the mixed 4×100m and mixed 4×400m will qualify for Budapest, while 12 teams in every event will secure places for Beijing.
On day one, eight teams in each of the six relay events will qualify for Beijing through qualification round one. These teams will then contest the final to compete for World Relays titles and prize money.
Another four teams in each of the six events will secure their spots for Beijing through qualification round two on day two. The second day of competition will also see six teams in each of the two mixed relay events qualify for Budapest.
NOTE: The list was first posted by Maxwell Kumoye, the AFN Media Committee Chairman on his blog
