Team Nigeria’s Ekevwo Grabs Gold as Fastest Man in Morocco
Enekwechi add Shot Put gold to haul
Team Nigeria’s Raymond Ekevwo ran 9.96secs personal best time to clinch the 100m gold medal of the 12th African Games in Rabat, Morocco yesterday.
He became the second Nigerian to run a sub-10 in the last 13 years since Olusoji Fasuba did the 9.85secs at the IAAF Diamond League in Doha in 2007. Divine Oduduru is the other sprinter to do the sub-10 this year when he scorched to 9.86
The 20 year-old former Nigerian Junior Champion, Ekevwo, who officially transferred from Oral Roberts University (ORU) to University of Florida (UF), for the rest of his collegiate career in the US, dusted pre-race favourite, Cote d’Ivoire’s Arthur Cisse who finished second in 9.97 seconds.
Another Nigerian Itsekiri Usheoritse Ese ran a new 10.02 seconds personal best to pick the bronze medal.
Ekevwo’s time in the blue ribband event has also catapulted him to sixth fastest Nigerian in the all-time list behind Fasuba (9.85), Divine Oduduru (9.86), Seun Ogunkoya (9.92), Davidson Ezinwa (9.94), Olapade Adeniken (9.95) and Deji Aliu (9.95).
The Day-Two of the track and field event of the Games also witnessed debutant Chuwuebuka Enekwechi expectedly picking the Shot Put gold medal after heaving his eighth throw over 21m (21.48m) this season.
It was the only 21m throw at the event and the Nigerian capped his debut at the games winning the gold.
With Blessing Okagbare false starting to get kicked out of the women’s sprint, Cote D’Ivoire’s Marie Josee Ta Lou ran a comfortable 11.09 seconds to successfully defend the title she first won four years ago in Congo Brazzaville.
Nigerian duo of the Joy Udo-Gabriel and Alphonsus Anikeme came in fourth and eighth with the former running 11.44 seconds, just two hundreth of a second off her personal best of 11.42 seconds.
In the 110m hurdles, Nigeria’s Abejoye Oyeniyi Ezekiel won the silver medal (13.90 seconds) behind Algeria’s Bouanani Amine while in the women’s high jump, Doreen Amata’s bid to win a third gold medal became a mere wish as her 1.78m height was only good enough for the fifth position behind compatriot, Isah Esther who also cleared 1.78m.
Ghana’s Yeboah Rose Amoanimaa won the gold (1.84m) while Morocco’s Siba Rhizlane (1.81m) and Ethiopia’s Ubang Ariyat Dibow (1.81m) settled for the silver and bronze medals respectively.
It was silver and bronze for the Nigerian duo of Ogunrinde Temilola Olatoke (64.68m) and Olatoye Oyesade Adetola in the women’s hammer throw as Burkina Faso’s Bambara Laetitia Kimalou won the gold (65.28m).
The third Nigerian in the final, Queen Obisesan threw 61.82m to place fifth. It was the second consecutive silver for Ogunrinde since he switched allegiance to Nigeria from the USA.
Meanwhile sprint hurdler, Tobi Amusan ran a blistering 12.69 seconds to qualify for the final of the 100m hurdles which holds today.
Also in the final as one of the fastest losers is Ayemoba Grace Ikaluse. She ran 13.59 to place fourth in her semi final heat.
In the women’s 400m,the duo of Favour Ofili and Patience OkonGeorge made it to today’s final. Ofili ran 51.94 seconds to win her semis heat while Okon-George came in third (51.96) behind prerace favourite, Botswana’s Moroko Galefe (51.53) and Moraa Mary of Kenya (51.75).