Ruth Usoro Still Missing from World Athletics Rankings Despite 2026 Performances
Nigeria’s long jumper Ruth Usoro has yet to be restored to the World Athletics rankings despite returning to competition this year.
Once ranked as high as 14th in the world, Usoro’s absence from the official list highlights the impact of long spells away from competition on the ranking system.
In January and February 2026, Usoro competed in three indoor meets in the United States.
She recorded 6.26m at the Texas Tech Corky Classic, 5.93m at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in Boston, and a season’s best of 6.65m at the Jarvis Scott Invitational in Lubbock, Texas.
World Athletics rankings operate on a rolling 12‑month system, requiring athletes to log a minimum number of valid performances in sanctioned competitions.
Usoro’s long breaks, first between August 2024 and July 2025, and again until early 2026 meant her previous points expired. Although she has competed three times this year, she may not yet have accumulated enough qualifying results to re-enter the rankings.
Usoro’s omission is striking given her past status as one of the world’s top long jumpers. At her peak, she was ranked 14th globally, a position that showed her consistency and ability to deliver big jumps on major stages.
In her peak she also made it to the finals of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham where she finished sixth in the long jump and fifth in the triple jump, eighth in the World Indoor Championships. She was also NCAA tripe jump champion indoors and out.
