AFN to release athletics final team list today

The Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) will today release its final list of athletes that will fly the nation’s flag at the 13th African Games in Ghana.

AFN Technical Director, Samuel Onikeku, dropped the hint while chatting with journalists on the federation’s Media platform yesterday.

“Give us tomorrow (today), names of both foreign and home-based athletes will be made available to you,” Onikeku stated.

The Guardian learnt that about 18 foreign-based athletes, including World Record holder in the women’s 100m hurdles, Tobi Amusan, and world silver medalist in the long jump, Ese Brume, are on the list of athletes heading to Ghana.

While the home-based athletes will be the last batch to leave Nigeria for Ghana on March 11, their foreign-based counterparts will join the camp in Ghana. The athletics events will begin from March 18.

Apart from the women’s 100m hurdles, where Amusan is expected to dominate, and the long jump, where the duo of Ese Brume and Ruth Usoro are tipped for medals, Team Nigeria also has the upper hand in men’s and women’s Shot-put, women’s Discus and women’s hammer.

Nigeria is also expected to give other competitors a good run in men and women’s Javelin.

On the track, Team Nigeria is expecting two or more medals in the relays, just as all eyes will be on Favour Ofili to deliver a medal in the women’s 200m if she makes the list to Ghana.

Home-based sprinter, Consider Ekanem, is also expected to use the African Games in Ghana to make a bold statement in 100m and 200m, though he has a mountain to climb because top sprinters from Kenya, South Africa, Botswana and Cameroon will be on parade at the African Games.

There is also hope on home-based women’s sprinter, Olayinka Olajide, to deliver a medal at the Games if she could replicate the 11.1 seconds or 11.2 seconds she ran at the National Athletics Trials in Asaba, Delta State last month.

Olajide is expected to team up with the foreign-based stars to give Nigeria a gold medal in the 4x100m women event.

In all, athletics has the highest number of athletes, 50, in Team Nigeria’s contingent to the African Games, which will officially begin today and end on March 23.