Onwuzurike Shines on Diamond League Debut, Ofili Battles Sprint Icons in Brussels
Nigerian sprinters Udodi Chudi Onwuzurike and Favour Ofili were impressive at the Allianz Memorial Van Damme, the final regular-season meet of the 2025 Wanda Diamond League, held at the iconic King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels.
Making his debut on the prestigious Diamond League circuit, 22-year-old Onwuzurike clocked a time of 20.27 seconds in the men’s 200m to finish third in a tightly contested race.
The 2021 World U20 champion was edged out by Dominican Republic’s Alexander Ogando (20.16) and USA’s Robert Gregory (20.19), both of whom are ranked among the top sprinters globally.
Onwuzurike’s performance not only earned him Diamond League points but also marked a historic milestone—he becomes the 10th Nigerian athlete to compete in the elite one-day series and only the second Nigerian male sprinter to do so, following Divine Oduduru’s debut in 2019.
In the women’s 100m, Favour Ofili faced a star-studded field that included Olympic legend Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, world champion Sha’Carri Richardson, and USA’s Melissa Jefferson-Wooden.
Ofili ran 11.19 seconds to finish fourth, narrowly behind Fraser-Pryce in what was their first-ever head-to-head over the distance.
Jefferson-Wooden stormed to victory in 10.76 seconds, recording her third win in four meetings against Ofili.
Richardson followed in 11.08 seconds, leveling her head-to-head record with the Nigerian at 1-1, while Britain’s Daryll Neita placed third in 11.15, also evening her record against Ofili.
