What appears an uphill task awaits Nigeria’s mixed 4x400m relay team today, in its bid to make an appreciable impact at the ongoing Paris 2024 Olympics.The Nigerians will compete in the second semifinal heat for one of the three automatic qualification tickets with Great Britain, The Netherlands, Italy, Ireland and Dominican Republic.
 
To get the ticket, Chidi Okezie and his ‘army’ in the Nigerian team, including Samuel Ogazi, Patience Okon-George, and Omolara Ogunmakinju must run faster than the 3:12.87 African record that they set, when they finished fourth at the World Relays held in May, in the Bahamas.
 
Three of the countries, Italy (3:10.69), The Netherlands (3:10.73) and Ireland (3:09.92) have ran faster than Nigeria this year, while Great Britain have the strongest squad in the group.
 
The Britons parade the fastest man in the 400m this year, Matthew Hudson-Smith, who is one of just two athletes to have gone under 44 seconds this year (43.74), as well as, two other men, Charles Dobson (44.23) and Samuel Reardon (44.70), who have both broken 45 seconds this year.
 
On the women’s side, the Britons have two athletes, Amber Anning (49.51) and Laviai Nielsen (49.87), who have broken 50 seconds this year and ‘Nigerian’ Victoria Ohuruogu (50.76), who is also available.
 
On their part, the Irish, complete with their ‘Nigerian’ star, Rhasidat Adeleke, edged Nigeria to the bronze medal in the Bahamas to set a new 3:11.53 national record. Since then, Adeleke has set a new 49.20 lifetime best and may just be the difference in Paris.
 
The Netherlands are another team that will rely heavily on 400m hurdles runner, Femke Bol, who ensured that they came second behind the USA at the World Relays in May.
 
The Dominican Republic are banking on the reigning world champion, Marileidy Paulino, who led them to the Mixed 4x400m relay gold in 2022, at the World Athletics Championships, while the Italians, who have ran faster than Nigeria this year, will hope Luca Sito, who has done a 44.75 this year and ‘Nigerian,’ Ayomide Folorunsho, the 400m hurdles runner, who they can call upon can to see them through.
 
Meanwhile, World Athletics have ruled out the possibility of Nigeria making a podium appearance in the Discus event. In its preview, WA did not give Nigeria’s trio of Ashley Anumba, Obiageri Pamela Amaechi, and Chioma Onyekwere any chance of getting a medal at the Paris Olympics.

Nigeria is one of only two countries after the USA to register three athletes for the Discuss throw event at the Paris 2024 Olympics. The trio of African Athletics Championships’ queen, Ashley Anumba, reigning African Games champion, Obiageri Pamela Amaechi and reigning Commonwealth Games champion and African record holder, Chioma Onyekwere, will be making history in Paris as the first trio that will be competing at the Games in the Discus event for the first time-ever.
 
The first and the last time Nigeria made an appearance in the event at the Games was in 2016 when Chinwe Okoro failed to make it out of the qualifying stage.
According to sportsnow.com, the same fate that befell Okoro has been predicted for the trio of Anumba, Amaechi and Onyekwere.
They sprang a surprise two years ago at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, United Kingdom.
 
Amaechi tops the African list for the event with the 63.17m lifetime best that she threw in May, and she is the only one that has thrown near anything that could get her into the final of the event.
 
The duo of Onyekwere (61.35m) and Anumba (61.00m) are second and third on the list but will need to throw farther than they have done this year to stand a chance of making it to the final.
 
World Athletics is predicting a tough battle for the medals that will not include the Nigerians. USA’s defending champion Valarie Allman is seen as the one to beat following the absence of the world leader in the event, Cuba’s Yaime Perez, whose throw of 73.09m in April is the farthest discus mark in the world since 1989.
 
Allman is second on the world list with 70.89m, while China’s 2022 world gold medalist, Feng Bin, is third with the 67.89m she threw at the Bislett Games in Oslo, Norway.
 
Amaechi is ranked the 28th best in the world while Onyekwere and Anumba are ranked 39th and 44th respectively. Nigerians believe in miracle, but can they hope for one in this event? The answer will start manifesting today, the second day of track and field action in Paris with the qualifying event holding inside the main bowl of the magnificent Stade de France.