- Kanyinsola Ajayi and Favour Ashe have advanced to the 100 metres semifinals
- 19-year-old Ajayi defeated the reigning Olympic champion, Marcell Jacobs
- What’s next for the Nigerian Olympic youngsters?
Olympic newcomers Kanyinsola Ajayi and Favour Ashe, both students at Auburn University, USA, have earned their spots in the men’s 100m semifinals, representing a significant career achievement and a boost for other Nigerian athletes on the Olympic stage.
The Heat 5 preview
Both Nigerian athletes were impressive in their preliminary heats to secure their positions among the top competitors in one of the most coveted events of the track and field programme.
Ajayi defeated the reigning Italian Olympic champion, Marcell Jacobs with a time of 10.02 seconds. Jacobs finished in second place with a time of 10.05 seconds, while Ghanian Abdul Rasheed Saminu secured third place with a time of 10.06 seconds. So far, Ajayi’s best professional record has been 10.00 seconds, it remains to be seen if he can beat his fastest record yet again.
What is next for the youngsters?
With Ajayi and Ashe both progressing to the semifinals, excitement is mounting for their forthcoming races as many Nigerians cast their hopes on the youngsters in the quest for a medal at the Olympics. Ashe was visibly unimpressed by his performances coming fourth in the heat but however happy that he progressed into the semifinals
“I came into today’s meet with a plan of running the perfect race…but during this heat, I didn’t execute well,” he said as reported by Making of Champions.
The semifinal will no doubt be a significant challenge, although surmountable, as they will face another set of the world's fastest sprinters.
Another draw of death
Outpacing an Olympic champion is certainly no small feat, Ajayi will however need to race relentlessly against all odds to secure a place in the final this evening.
In the men's 100m semifinal heat 1 by 7:05 pm today, Ashe will go up against Lyles, Seville, Hinchliffe, Eseme, Alli, Maswanganyi and Benjamin Azamati from Ghana to secure a place in the final. Ashe comes up immediately after by 7:14 pm and will face off with Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo, South Africa’s Akani Simbine and USA’s Bednarek, Matadi of Liberia, Espinosa of Cuba, Italy’s Jacobs and Hartmann of Germany.
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