Amusan, Okon George, Enekwechi lead Nigeria’s quest for medals

Tobiloba Amusan, who recently ran 7.89 seconds in the sprint hurdles, will lead Nigeria’s quest for medals at the IAAF World Indoor Championships scheduled for this weekend in Birmingham, United Kingdom.

Joining the reigning National Collegiate of Athletics Association (NCAA) Championships and All Africa Games 100m hurdles queen in the quest for laurels are Chukwuebuka Enekwechi (Shot Put), Chidi Okezie (400m), Patience Okon George (400m) and Lindsay Lindley (60m Hurdles).

Debutante Amusan ran her personal best 7.89 seconds last month at an indoor meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. She will be looking to become the second Nigerian sprint hurdler after Glory Alozie (7.87 seconds) to make a podium appearance in the championships.

Alozie won a silver medal inside the Green Dome Arena in Maebashi, Japan in 1999 to become the first and only Nigerian athlete  to win an individual medal at the World Championships indoors and out when she followed up her indoor triumph with a silver medal outdoors in Seville in the summer of that year.

Also aiming to emulate Alozie will be ‘Jesus Hurdler,’ Lindley, who will also be competing in the same event.

Quartermiler Okon George will be making her second trip to the championships after she anchored the women’s 4x400m team to a  fifth place finish four years ago in Sopot, Poland.

This time she will be competing in both the individual 400m and the relay.

Okon George, like Amusan, will be aiming for a place in the record books as the second Nigerian after Falilat Ogunkoya to win an individual medal in the quartermile at the championships.