Nigerian teen sprinter, Faith Okwose has blazed her way into the record books at the Hasely Crawford Stadium at the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games, smashing the women’s 100m record with an impressive time of 11.26 seconds (+0.8 m/s) to secure the event’s gold medal.
Her compatriot, Justina Eyakpobeyan, however, won silver by setting a new personal best with her remarkable 11.26-second run while home girl, Sanna Frederick was third in 11.48s.
In their semifinal races, the Nigerian youngsters each broke the Games Record of 11.46 seconds. Okwose won in 11.42 seconds, while Eyakpobeyan followed with an identical lifetime best of 11.35 seconds, confirming their supremacy in the event in the Caribbean country. Okwose and Eyakpobeyan are scheduled to participate in the 200m, where they are expected to take the top two spots.
On the men’s side, England’s Teddy Wilson claimed victory in the 100m, etching his name in history with a winning time of 10.37 seconds.
His fellow countryman, originally from Nigeria, Ebuka Nwokeji put in a strong performance on his way to achieving a personal best time of 10.43 seconds, while earning the silver medal in the process.
Jamaica’s Shaquane Gordon joined the ranks of the honorees, securing the bronze medal with a time of 10.43 seconds. Sunday Israel Okon finished fourth with 10.58 seconds, just missing the podium.
Meanwhile, Samuel Ogazi and Erioluwa Olanrewaju qualified for the men’s 400m final, with Ogazi winning his semifinal in 48.17 seconds and his compatriot finishing second in 48.73 seconds.