Team Nigeria drops 13 athletes as home-based stars depart for Mauritius

• Ekevwo, Amusan jet in

Thirteen athletes were left out, as home-based stars departed Lagos, yesterday, for Mauritius, venue of the 22nd African Athletics Championships, which starts tomorrow.

Reigning African Games 100m and 100m hurdles champions, Raymond Ekevwo and Tobiloba Amusan, are already in Mauritius after competing at the Irena Szewinska Memorial, a World Athletics Continental Gold Tour meet in Poland.

The home-based athletes, who trained at the Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, left alongside their coaches and officials of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN).

An official of the team told The Guardian shortly before their departure that among the athletes dropped were high jumper Aya David, long jumper Tobechukwu Emmanuel, Fadekemi Olude (10k walk) and Osaretin Joy Usunbon (4x400m).

No reason was given for the decision to drop the athletes.

However, The Guardian learnt that some of them had not done their Out of Competition Tests and the AFN did not want to take chances. Ekevwo is hoping to add the African Championship title to the African Games gold he won three years ago in Morocco, thereby returning Nigeria to the top of the podium 12 long years after Olusoji Fasuba won in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The 23-year old, who ran 9.96s to win the African Games gold in 2019, is also hoping to run faster and break compatriot, Seun Ogunkoya’s 9.94s Championship record set in Dakar, Senegal in 1998.

Amusan, on her part, is aiming at successfully defending the title she won four years ago at the 21st edition of the championship in Asaba, Delta State in Nigeria.

The sprint hurdler will also be aiming at the 12.77s championship record set by compatriot, Glory Alozie, in Dakar, Senegal in 1998. If she succeeds, the 24-year-old would have broken three of the four records held by Alozie.

In 2019 Amusan ran 12.68s to break Alozie’s African Games record and last year; she also dismantled the 12.44s African record her illustrious predecessor set in 1998 when she ran 12.42s to win the sprint hurdles title at the Diamond League final.

The championship will serve as preparations for both the World Athletics Championship in Oregon, U.S., next month and the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, which will also begin towards the end of next month.

Nigeria placed third on the medals table at the 21st edition of the championships with nine gold, five silver and six bronze medals behind Kenya (11,6,2) and South Africa (9,14,8).