Nigeria got off the mark in athletics at the ongoing Islamic Solidarity Games in Riyadh, thanks to a brilliant performance from discus thrower Obiageri Pamela Amaechi, who clinched silver in the women’s Discus Throw.

Competing on the opening day of Athletics, Amaechi delivered a best effort of 56.99m, securing Nigeria’s first medal of the Games. She finished just behind Cameroon’s Nora Atim Monie, who struck gold with 57.04m, while Türkiye’s Ozlem Becerek settled for bronze.

Nigeria almost doubled its medal haul in the event, but Chioma Onyekwere-Lyons narrowly missed the podium, taking fourth place with a throw of 55.08m.

In the men’s 100m, Caleb Temidara John qualified for the final after a chaotic semi-final marred by six false or faulty starts. He advanced with a time of 10.42s (0.0) as a non-automatic qualifier but was unable to finish the race in the final. Oman’s Ali Anwar Ali Al Balushi won gold, Saudi Arabia’s Abdulaziz Atafi claimed silver, and Cameroon’s Emmanuel Eseme Alobwede took bronze.

Nigeria’s second entrant in the event, James Taiwo Emmanuel, ran in the other semi-final but missed the cut for the final after placing sixth in 10.46s.

Amaechi’s silver brings Nigeria’s overall tally to six gold, six silver, and four bronze, a total that has seen the nation slip from 6th to 8th on the medal table. Türkiye, Uzbekistan, and Iran currently occupy the top three positions, with Egypt and Morocco also ahead of Nigeria.