Chidera Ezeakor, Chinonso Odinaka complete sprint double at AFN Golden League
Reigning National Sports Festival 100m champion Chidera Ezeakor and Chinonso Odinaka stamped their authority on the tracks of the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium on Tuesday, completing a commanding 100m and 200m sweep at the 2026 AFN Golden League in Benin City.
Having set the tone on Monday with victory in the men’s 100m, Ezeakor returned 24 hours later to tighten his grip on the sprint division. The powerful sprinter blazed to a personal best of 20.83s to win the men’s 200m Final C, running nearly a second clear of Paul Otagba, who finished in 21.66s. Enoch Dabo followed in 21.76s.
Despite battling a -1.6m/s headwind, Ezeakor’s transition from the bend into the home straight was smooth and technically precise a performance that underlined both his speed and growing maturity on the circuit.
Odinaka mirrored that dominance in the women’s category. After claiming the 100m title on Monday in 11.69s, she powered to 200m gold in Final A with a well-measured 24.13s. Mariam Jegede pushed hard but settled for second in 24.16s, while Purpose Excellence Akinpelu clocked 24.53s for third.
With a +0.4m/s tailwind assisting the race, Odinaka’s explosive start and strong mid-race drive proved decisive, further cementing her status as one of the leading figures in Nigeria’s sprint season.
The one-lap specialists also delivered quality performances. Sikiru Adeyemi stormed to a season’s best 46.41s to win the men’s 400m, ahead of Ighogboja Micheal (46.79s) and Kwashi Courage (47.90s). In the women’s event, Siviana Ossai clocked 53.53s for gold, finishing ahead of Esther Peter (54.37s) and Udo Odot (54.43s).
Over the hurdles, 2024 NSF champion Wisdom Musa claimed the men’s 110m hurdles title in 14.31s, narrowly ahead of Abdullahi Abdulazeez (14.41s) and Uchechukwu Obi (14.81s). In the men’s 400m hurdles, Oseiwe Salami set the pace in 52.25s, edging Daniel Possible (53.01s) and Sodiq Adebisi (53.02s) in a tightly contested race.
Field events were equally competitive. Clergy Edet soared to 1.70m to clinch the high jump title, while Olise Favour leapt 6.29m to win the long jump ahead of Glory Jarrett (5.99m) and Okoronkwo Precious (5.92m).
In the throws, Ukandu Judith edged a tight shot put contest with 12.07m, just ahead of Ruqqayah Mustapha (12.04m) and Juliana Ademola (11.91m). Mustapha, however, returned stronger in the discus, launching 42.87m to secure gold, with Emmanuella Kanu (38.49m) and Blessing Ifunaya Ukoha (35.47m) completing the podium.
Monday’s opening day had already hinted at the standard to come, with Ezeakor clocking 10.32s in the 100m and multiple personal bests recorded across field events. Tuesday’s finals only reinforced that momentum.
Now, in its maiden series, the AFN Golden League continues to attract Nigeria’s elite athletes across premium, classic, and promotional categories. Premium events such as the 100m and 400m carry N100,000 for first place, while classic and promotional categories offer both prize money and valuable exposure.
The spotlight shifts to Lagos, where the next leg of the series will hold on March 18-19.
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