Ofili Surpasses Chukwuma, Becomes Africa’s Fastest 200m Runner in 2026
Nigeria’s Favour Ofili has supplanted her friend and training partner Rosemary Chukwuma as Africa’s fastest 200m runner so far in 2026, after clocking a new season’s best of 22.15 seconds.
The 23-year-old sprinter produced the performance at the Lone Star Grand Prix, a World Athletics Continental Gold Tour event in Texas, the United States, a significant improvement on the 22.46 she ran earlier in Gainesville, Florida.
Her time moves her to the top of the African half-lap list, ahead of Chukwuma’s 22.42 set in April at Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
The race itself was dominated by reigning Olympic 200m champion Gabby Thomas, who stormed to a world-leading 21.70. American sprinter Kayla White finished second in 22.07, with Ofili taking third but securing the continental lead.
Ofili remains the only Nigerian woman to have broken the 22-second barrier over 200m, with her lifetime best of 21.96 set in 2022. She was also a finalist at the Paris 2024 Olympics, cementing her reputation as one of Africa’s premier sprint talents.
