MTN CHAMPS: Emmanuel Ojeli, others smashe personal bests at Day 1 of Lagos Continental Relays
Two-time Olympian, Emmanuel Ojeli, stole the show as the MTN Champs Lagos Continental Relays kicked off yesterday, at the Yaba College of Technology and University of Lagos sports complexes.
The first day of the event delivered standout performances, particularly in the 100m and 400m events, where several athletes recorded personal and season bests. 2,505 athletes from 155 secondary schools competed in four age categories: Cadet (U14), Youth (U17), Junior (U20), and Senior.
Ojeli smashed his three-year-old personal best in the 100m semifinals with a blistering time of 10.24 seconds. Emmanuel Babalola followed in 10.55 seconds, while Ganiu Hassan came third in 10.63 seconds.
Favour Ashe, fresh off a strong showing at the Niger Delta Sports Festival, clocked a wind-assisted 10.14 seconds to win his heat, narrowly beating ThankGod Igube, who ran 10.23 seconds. Chidera Ezeakor also impressed in his semifinal race, finishing 10.43 seconds ahead of Oriyomi Akala’s 10.56 seconds.
In the women’s 100m, Iyanu Bada set the tone by clocking a personal best of 11.48 seconds in the preliminaries, then went even faster in the semifinals with an 11.38-second finish. In the same heat, Janet Adesiyan ran 11.88 seconds while Favour Odiyeye finished 11.97 seconds.
The Junior Men’s 100m saw John Caleb post a new personal best of 10.38 seconds in the semifinals after coming close to his previous best in the heats. Qudus Akintoye followed with a time of 10.59 seconds, and Abdulrahman Jimoh clocked 10.61 seconds, rounding out the top three semifinal times in that division.
In the Junior Women’s category, Lucy Nwankwo of Team MTN recorded the fastest time across all 100m semifinals, clocking a personal best of 12.07 seconds to win her heat. Her teammate, Azeezat Muhammed-Raji, followed with a 12.20-second finish, also a personal best. Ojone Akubo-Adegbe placed third overall with 12.27 seconds.
In the men’s 400m heats, Samson Nathaniel emerged as the top qualifier, recording a season’s best of 46.20 seconds. Benjamin Magaji won his heat in 48.28 seconds, placing second overall. For the women, Olympian Patience Okon-George opened her season with a 53.19-second run, while Miracle Donald-Uwem clocked a new lifetime best of 54.59 seconds to win her heat and rank second overall.
The first day of competition showcased a promising future for Nigerian athletics, with several athletes showing significant progress and potential heading into the remaining days of the relays. The Lagos competitions continue till Saturday, April 12, with the season 3 grand finale in Uyo from April 30 to May 3.
