Spectacularly, Hurdler Oluwatobiloba Ayomide Amusan simply called Tobi Amusan, became the first Nigerian athlete to win a World Athletics Championship gold as she stormed to victory in the women’s 100m hurdles in Oregon on Sunday.
Amusan, who had obliterated the world record in an astonishing semi-final where she clocked 12.12sec, powered over the line at Hayward Field in 12.06sec.
Before her emergence as the recipient of Nigeria’s first-ever World Championship gold, Amusan had produced a jaw-dropping world record in the semi-finals, smashing the previous best mark of 12.20secs held by Keni Harrison of the United States in 2016.
Amusan, who finished fourth three years ago at the World Championship in Doha, also became the second Nigerian sprint hurdler to win a medal at the Championships after Glory Alozie who won a silver medal in Seville, Spain in 1999.
Amusan became the first Nigerian to bag a Diamond League trophy in September 2021 when she set a sensational African Record and Personal Best of 12.42secs, Zurich, breaking Glory Alozie’s 23-year African record.
Alozie ran 12.44secs in Monaco on August 8, 1998 to set a new African record, running the time two other times in Brussels 20 days later and at the World Championships on August 28, 1999 in Seville, Spain.
Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan broke the African record after clocking 12.41 seconds in the 100m women’s hurdle in June 2022.
Amusan broke her own record with her third-best run of the season at the Diamond League meet in Paris, France.
During the Paris Diamond League, Amusan blazed to victory with a time (12.41secs – AR) that moved her up to third in the world in 2022, only behind World Leader Jasmine Camacho-Quinn (12.37s) and Alaysha Johnson (12.40s).
Amusan became only the fifth woman to successfully retain gold at the 100m hurdles event after claiming gold at the African Athletics Championships in Mauritius in June.
The 25-year-old won the title for the first time in 2018 at the 21st edition of the competition and is now the third Nigerian to successfully defend the sprint hurdles title after Maria Usifo (1984 and 1985) and Glory Alozie (1996, 1998, and 2000).
She is the fifth African to achieve this feat.
In August 2021 in Tokyo, Amusan won her first semi-final in 12.62s to become the first Nigerian since Glory Alozie at Sydney 2000 to qualify for the 100m Hurdles final at the Olympics.
She broke Nigeria’s 21-year-old record.
(Photo: AFP, Getty Images)