5 May 2008
Lagos — Shot putter, Vivian Chukwuemeka, the women's 4x400m relay team and quarter mile hurdler Ajoke Odumosu's late rally on Day Five of the 16th African Athletics Championships yesterday ensured Nigeria moved a step above the third position she clinched two years ago in the championships as the curtains were finally drawn on a spectacular championships at the Addis Ababa stadium in Ethiopia.
Nigeria garnered seven gold, seven silver and five bronze medals to place second behind South Africa, who amassed a whopping 12 gold, two silver and eight bronze medals while host country, Ethiopia was third with six gold, six silver and three bronze medals.
Signs that Nigeria would make a final day rush for gold became evident when Odumosu, who had an asthma crisis immediately after coming through her semi-final heat a day earlier, ran the race of her life in the final five metres to pip Morocco's Lhabz Lamiae and Burkina Faso's Soulama Aissata to the last hurdle.
The Nigerian ran a new 55.92 season's best to not only become the 12th fastest in the world so far this year but also the fifth Nigerian to win the event after Saidat Onanuga last won it in 1996.
With Odumosu's victory, all attention was turned to the 200m where Damola Osayomi was expected to complete another sprints double barely one year after accomplishing the feat in Algiers at the last All Africa Games but she found South Africa's Le Roux Isabel (22.69) and Mali's Camara Kadiatu (22.70) to hot to handle as she settled for the bronze with a new 22.83 personal best.
However, the tears on the faces of the Nigerian officials in the stadium, including Patrick Ekeji, the Director of Sports in the National Sports Commission (NSC), who arrived 24 hours earlier, were wiped by the commanding performance of the women's 4x400m relay team as they completely devastated the field to win with 3:30.07 - a new championships record and Nigeria's eight gold in the event.
The impressive work was started by former Folawiyo U-15 800m champion and semi-finalist in the 400m at the championships, Oluoma Nwoke, who handed the baton in first position to silver medal winner in the 400m, Sade Abugan, who gave the team an unassailable lead before handing over to Endurance Abinuwa who cruised in first position to hand over to Joy Eze who anchored the team to gold.
With Nigeria and Ethiopia tied on six gold medals each after Kenenisa Bekele had given the hosts the 10,000m gold, birthday girl, Chukwuemeka was controlling event in the shot put where she picked her second consecutive gold medal in the championship with a throw of 17.50m.A fourth Nigerian gold was however lost in the men's Javelin where Kenechukwu Ezeofor led from the first to the fourth round with a best of 72.53 achieved in the second round after opening with 70.04 which would still have won him the gold until the fifth round when Tunisia's Kbabou M threw 74.20 to snatch the gold.
It was, however, an impressive display by the Nigerian who has never won any title for Nigeria since he started competing in the green and white colours of the country.
Nigeria's Chinonye Ohadugba won the bronze in the triple jump (14.14m) behind come-backing former World Champion, Cameroon's Francoise Emille-Mbango (14.76m) and All Africa Games champion, Cuba-born Sudanese, Yamile Aldama.
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