Ofili misses chance to break Alozie’s record as Nigeria’s youngest individual woman medalist in World Championships history

Favour Ofili has missed the opportunity to replace Glory Alozie as the youngest Nigerian woman individual medalist in the history of the World Athletics
Championships after failing to qualify for Friday’s women’s 200m final.

At 20 years and eight months, Ofili could have become the youngest Nigerian to win an individual medal, supplanting Alozie who won a 100m hurdles silver in
1999 at the age of 21 years and 241 days.

The Louisiana State University student ran 20.86 to place seventh in the third semifinal heat to exit the half lap event for the second straight edition.

The 20 year old’s season has been hampered by an injury she sustained soon after running a new 22.11 African record in the 200m at the NCAA indoor
championships in Albuquerque, New Mexico in March.

Ofili has now exited at the semifinals in three editions of the Championships since she made her debut in 2019 in Doha, Qatar.

Nigeria’s overall youngest indivial medalist is Francis Obiorah Obikwelu who won a 200m bronze in 1999 at the age of 20 years and 276 days while the youngest medalist across board remains Kunle Adejuyigbe who ran the second leg in the 4x400m team that won a bronze medal in Gothenburg, Sweden in 1995 at the age of 18 years and five days.

Adejuyigbe’s record can be broken by Justina Eyakpobeyan if the women’s 4x100m relay team should make it to the podium in Budapest.

The Commonwealth Youth Games 100m and 200m silver medalist won’t be 17 years until September 2023.

Meanwhile, quartermiler Doris Jacob remains the youngest Nigerian to participate and run in the final at the championships.

She was 15 years, 236 days old when she ran in the women’s 4x400m relay in Athens, Greece in 1997 and became the youngest finalist a day later at 15 years
and 237 days.

Nigeria’s oldest individual medalist is Ajayi Agbebaku who won Nigeria’s first medal at the inaugural edition of the Championships in 1983. He was 27 years
old at the time.

Olopade Adeniken however remains Nigeria’s oldest medalist across board as he was 28 when he helped Nigeria clinched a 4x100m medal and an African record in
Athens in 1997.