Nigeria's performance in Budapest was a disappointment, but it is not the end of the world.
After the setbacks they both suffered at the last World Championships in Budapest, the Nigerian duo of Tobi Amusan and Ese Brume have been presented with another opportunity to end what has been a difficult athletics season on a high.
The 2023 Wanda Diamond League season has reached its climax.
With all 13 qualifying meets now complete, all attention turns to the finale this weekend at The Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon where Amusan and Brume will be slugging it out with the very best in the world.
While many are looking forward positively to Oregon and even farther ahead to the Olympic Games in Paris, the disappointment from the last World Championships in Budapest where Nigeria failed to win any medals is still very fresh.
Bad time in Budapest
The team of 23 athletes assembled by the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) had high hopes of improving on their performance at the previous edition in Eugene, USA, where they won a gold medal and a silver medal.
However, they were unable to replicate that success in Budapest and finished with no medals.
The closest Nigeria came to a medal was in the women's long jump, where Brume finished fourth.
Brume a two-time World Championship medalist was expected to challenge for the podium in Budapest.
However, she was unable to produce her best form on the day and finished just outside the medals.
The expectations were also high for Amusan to challenge for a medal in the women's 100m hurdles as the defending champion and world record holder in the event.
However, having endured a torrid build-up to the event in Budapest with a cloud of uncertainty hanging over her due to a provisional suspension placed on her by the Athletics Integrity Unit, Amusan could only settle for a sixth-place finish in Budapest.
The other Nigerian athletes also struggled to make an impact in Budapest. The men's 100m runners, Seye Ogunlewe and Usheoritse Itsekiri, both failed to make it out of the semi-finals. The men's and Women's 4x100m relay team also failed to qualify for the final.
The country's fortunes were not any better in the field events where the trio of Sade Olatoye, Chioma Onyekwere, and Chukwuebuka Enekwechi who are all African champions could not make it to the finals in their respective events in Budapest
Nigeria's performance in Budapest was a disappointment, but it is not the end of the world.
Reasons for failure
Several reasons have been put forward for the uninspiring outing in Budapest which if properly addressed, the disappointment at the World Championships can be a catalyst for a superlative outing at the Paris Olympic Games,
Pockets of injuries to some of the country's promising athletes worked against Nigeria and the over-reliance on Collegiate athletes also caused havoc.
Nigeria has a long tradition of benefitting from the United States collegiate sports system and while it has helped many athletes raise their profiles this can be a double-edged sword.
On the one hand, the NCAA provides these athletes with the opportunity to compete against the best in the world.
On the other hand, it can also lead to them being over-trained and fatigued by the time they reach crucial events like the World Championships as was evident in the likes of Favour Ofili, Mercy Uko, and the likes in Budapest.
More than anything else, AFN President Tonobok Okowa admits the country's preparation for a top event like the World Championships leaves much to be desired and he blamed the sad situation on the paucity of funds.
"We weren't prepared for Budapest that is the truth," said the AFN boss in an interview published on Mainland Metro News."There were no funds to camp and we did not monitor our athletes to know how they were doing, everybody just came to Budapest and that was it. But I am consoled that at least we were in some finals."
Mr Okowa disclosed that he had already given up on world record holder in the 100mh, Tobi Amusan following her suspension by the World Athletics Athletes Integrity Unit, but was happy when she made it to Europe for the championships.
"We were already in Budapest when Tobi was cleared. Quite frankly she has not been training following the suspension we had to bring in a psychologist to help her to be mentally prepared. And I must tell you that she did well getting to the final. It was a miracle she reached the final.
"Tobi's coach left her and went to join the Jamaicans who were in camp for two weeks and then arrived in Budapest ten good days ahead to warm up. That was a luxury we couldn't afford and how then do we compete with the Jamaicans?"
However, Mr Okowa said that the AFN is looking ahead to next year's Olympics and the Africa Games with the hope that the country will return to winning ways.
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"It's good we have a sports minister now. And we hope and pray that he gives us a listening ear so that we can have funds to prepare our athletes ahead of competitions.
"We have athletes who can get to the podium, but if we don't prepare them how do they compete with the others from other countries who are well-funded and prepared?
"We will be adequately prepared for the Olympics and of course the African Games next year and we are going to ensure our team comes out tops," Mr Okowa assured.
Tackle the problems
If Nigeria wants to improve its performance at future World Championships and Olympics, it needs to address these issues.
The government needs to provide more funding for sports development, and the sports federations need to improve the coaching and competition for the athletes based at home. Nigeria also needs to invest in building better infrastructure for sports.
For the immediate task before Amusan and Brume in this weekend's Diamond League final, they can fall back on their respective performances the last time they were competing in Oregon.
Amusan set the world record in Oregon while Brume won an unprecedented silver medal for Nigeria during the 2021 World Championships held in the United States.
