Tobi Amusan, Favour Ashe lead Nigeria's strong start at African Athletics Championships in Ghana
Nigeria’s athletes opened their campaign at the 2026 CAA Africans Senior Athletics Championships in impressive fashion, with several stars advancing to the next stage of their events in Ghana.
World record holder Tobi Amusan made a confident return to competition, cruising into the final of the women’s 100m hurdles after clocking 12.82s in the heats, her first hurdles race of the season.
The Nigerian sprint hurdler looked composed throughout the race as she began her quest for another continental title.
Joining Amusan in the final is Janet Sunday, who enjoyed a memorable African Championships debut by finishing second in her heat behind Ghanaian record holder Evonne Britton.
The men’s 100m event provided one of the biggest talking points of the day after Favour Ashe survived an early scare to qualify for the semi-finals.
Ashe was initially disqualified for a false start, but Team Nigeria successfully appealed the decision, allowing the sprinter back into the race. He eventually finished in 10.55s, placing 24th overall and sealing his place in Wednesday’s semi-finals.
National Sports Festival champion Chidera Ezeakor also impressed, powering to victory in his heat ahead of Ghana’s Abdul-Rasheed Saminu with a time of 10.38s to progress comfortably.
In the women’s 100m, Rosemary Chukwuma led the Nigerian contingent after easing into the semi-finals with a strong 11.44s finish in Heat 2.
Miracle Ezechukwu also secured qualification after winning her heat, while Tejiri Ugoh did enough with a third-place finish to advance.
Nigeria’s dominance continued in the 400m events, where Samson Nathaniel, Sikiru Adeyemi, and Esther Okon all booked places in the next round.
Nathaniel produced a well-timed finish in the men’s 400m, surging ahead late to beat Uganda’s Omuka Kenneth and Kenya’s Musika Malongo in his heat.
Adeyemi also advanced after finishing third in his heat, keeping Nigeria firmly in contention across multiple events as the championships gather momentum in Ghana.
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