Nigeria kicked off its campaign at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo on a bright note, with sprinters Kayinsola Ajayi and Israel Okon Sunday storming into the men’s 100m semifinals.
Ajayi, making his debut on the global stage, clocked an impressive 9.88 seconds to finish second in his heat behind South Africa’s Gift Leotlela, who ran 9.87s. Jamaica’s Oblique Seville followed in 9.93s. The 21-year-old’s run set a new personal best and placed him third on Nigeria’s all-time list behind Olusoji Fasuba (9.85s) and Divine Oduduru (9.86s). He has now recorded five sub-10s this season, equalling the national career record.
Fellow debutant Israel Okon Sunday also delivered a commanding performance, winning his heat in 10.04 seconds ahead of Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes (10.06s) and Olympic champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs (10.20s).
Ajayi is set to feature in Semifinal 1 against Noah Lyles, Akani Simbine, Ackeem Blake, and Jacobs, while Okon will compete in Semifinal 3 alongside Seville, Letsile Tebogo, and Leotlela.
Nigeria’s presence was also felt in the field events, as national shot put record-holder Chukwuebuka Enekwechi finished fifth in the final with a best throw of 21.52m, after qualifying with 20.83m.
The championships, which began on Saturday in Tokyo, will run until September 21, with Team Nigeria aiming to build on its encouraging Day 2 start.
