Nigerian sprinter Enoch Adegoke has made history by qualifying for the men’s 100m final at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after clocking 10.00s as he finished second in Heat 2 of the semi-final race, while Usehoritse Itshekiri failed to finish the race as he pick up an injury in the final meters of the race.
Britain’s reigning European champion, Zharnel Hughes won heat 2 in a time of 9.98 seconds.
Adegoke becomes Team Nigeria’s first finalist in the men’s 100m event since the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. Nigeria has not been represented in the men’s sprint final at the games since Davidson Ezinwa achieved the feat in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
The race went to a nervy end after Adegoke and Team USA’s Bromell Tayvon finished tied on 10 seconds each. It took a couple of minutes for the officials to reexamine the footage from the finish line before the Nigerian was adjudged to have beaten the American to a place in the 100 meters final by whiskers.
The final, which is billed for 2pm on Sunday, is a lineup of powerful men, led by China’s Su Bingtain, who finished in a time of 9.83s in the third heat.
Usehoritse Itshekiri
The other Nigerian in the Olympics semi-final, Usehoritse Itshekiri, failed to finish the race as he collapsed and appeared to be in pains some metres away from the finish line.
The 23-year-old appeared to have stretched his hamstring in the final meters of the race. On his part, Itsekiri could only make seventh in the first heat after clocking 10.29 seconds.
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