Making of Champions

17/10/2026

Udodi Onwuzurike staged a resounding international resurgence during his 2026 campaign, putting past injury setbacks firmly in the rear-view mirror to re-establish himself among the world's top sprinters. The former World U20 and NCAA 200m champion gradually worked his way back into elite race shape. He finished among the top three at two Continental Tour Gold meets in the 200m in the lead-up to his primary target: the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

At Scotstoun Stadium in late July, Onwuzurike peaked right on cue. Stepping onto the blocks on July 31, he unleashed a composed, technically pristine bend before powering down the homestretch to capture Silver in a Season's Best (SB) of 20.09s. Onwuzurike’s runner-up finish was monumental, snapping a 32-year podium drought for Nigeria in the men's 200m at the Commonwealth Games since Daniel Effiong's Bronze. He also teamed up with Nigeria’s men’s 4x100m quartet to secure a Bronze medal.

After the Commonwealth Games, Onwuzurike won the 200m at the Espoo Motonet GP, adding another highlight to his resurgent season. His performances throughout the year also earned him a place at the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest, where he qualified for the 200m final.

17/10/2026

What does it take to stand out in a year when the competition for recognition is this fierce? For Nigerian male athletes, 2026 brought historic milestones and performances that will be difficult to forget. Some raised their game to new heights, others delivered when the stakes were highest, and a few changed the perception of what they could achieve. Here is how the 5 best athletes stack up.

17/10/2026

What does it take to stand out in a year when the competition for recognition is this fierce? For Nigerian male athletes, 2026 brought historic milestones and performances that will be difficult to forget. Some raised their game to new heights, others delivered when the stakes were highest, and a few changed the perception of what they could achieve. Here is how the 5 best athletes stack up.

Home Athletics Nigeria’s Top 10 Male Athletes in 2026: Part 2AthleticsReviewsNigeria’s Top 10 Male Athletes in 2026: Part 2By Oluwadare Popoola - October 17, 2026What does it take to stand out in a year when the competition for recognition is this fierce? For Nigerian male athletes, 2026 brought...

16/10/2026

Having set the Nigerian Record (NR) for the first time in 2022 and improved it in 2024 with 82.80m at the African Games, Chinecherem Nnamdi smashed his NR in only his second competition of the year, landing his Javelin at a new distance of 84.68m at the Tom Jones Memorial, which takes him to 8th on the African all-time list.

He followed that with a big 83.31m for a dominant win in the men’s javelin at the Alumni Muster in Texas. At the SEC Championships in Auburn, he threw 81.20m to claim his first SEC title.

Then came the crown. Nnamdi became the first Nigerian man to win an NCAA javelin title, and the Texas A&M senior did it on his very first throw, hitting 82.26m after three previous Top 5 finishes. The NCAA champion and Nigerian record holder capped his season at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where he placed 10th in the men’s Javelin final.

16/10/2026

Nigeria’s Decathlon scene received a boost in November last year, when Jami Schlueter switched allegiances from Great Britain. Born to a German father and a Nigerian mother, the University of Washington graduate chose Nigeria and did not take long to announce himself. During the indoor season, he set a National Heptathlon Record of 5789 points and improved it to 5871 points two weeks later at the US Combined Events Championships finishing 5th overall and moving to No. 2 on the African all-time list,

Then he took on the Decathlon, and rewrote the National Record. At the Mt. SAC Relays, he scored 7681 points, the highest decathlon total ever by a Nigerian, to finish 7th overall. He took it to 8024 points to win the Texas Greatest Athlete Meet, becoming the first Nigerian to pass 8000 points. This also makes him No.3 on the all-time African list. That score was built on six new personal bests across the ten events.

At the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Schlueter finished 7th in the men’s Decathlon with 7,665 points, giving everything in his first appearance for Nigeria.

16/10/2026

For Favour Ashe, 2026 was a story of redemption. Having been the last man to break 10s on Nigerian soil, a feat he achieved to win the 100m National title back in 2022, Ashe replicated same this year.

That moment came at the Commonwealth Games Trials in Lagos, where he reclaimed his national title with a new Personal Best (PB) of 9.93s (+0.5), having run 9.97s (+2.3) in the semi-finals. Prior to that, he competed at the World Relays in Gaborone where he helped Nigeria’s mixed 4x100m secure qualification to the inaugural Ultimate Championships and next year’s World Championships in Beijing.

 He was part of the Silver-winning team in the men’s 4x100m at the African Championships in Accra, and claimed Bronze in the same event at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

16/10/2026

Having started out as a middle-distance runner, Edidiong Udo developed as a quarter-miler under his college coach, Joel Brown, a move that eventually earned him a place in the Nigerian colours. He described it as having been in the wrong event as it took him almost 10 years to make his first appearance for Nigeria. 

At the Big Ten Championships in Lincoln, Nebraska, he ran a Personal Best (PB) of 44.91s in the preliminaries, then took Silver in the final, an upgrade on his medal from the previous edition. The 44.91s made him the second fastest in school history and the 10th fastest in Nigerian history.

Udo was selected for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow – his first international outing for Nigeria - and he qualified for two finals. He helped the mixed 4x400m team run a Season’s Best of 3:14.58 in the heat of the first-ever mixed 4x400m at the Commonwealth Games, booking a place in the final. The team eventually won a Bronze medal in the final as Udo settled for 8th place in the 400m.

16/10/2026

Israel Okon proved in 2026 that when the going gets tough, the tough get going, clocking his first-ever sub-10 and sub-20 while battling with an injury. He won a Bronze medal in 20.10s (0.5) at the SEC Championships in Auburn, then came the breakthrough in Kentucky.

At the NCAA East Regionals, he cracked 10s legally for the first time with a new PB of 9.99s (0.1) to win his 100m heat, which made him the 16th Nigerian man to run a sub-10. Just over an hour later, he returned for the 200m and ran another lifetime best of 19.94s (0.7), winning convincingly and advancing as the fastest 200m qualifier from the East Regionals.

At the NCAA Championships in Eugene, he won his 100m heat in 10.07s (-0.3) to reach the final, but injury set in. An hour later, he still showed up for the 200m final, having run 20.07s (0.1) in his heat. He pulled up during the race and jogged the rest of the way, yet he had enough in the tank to finish on the podium with a sub-20 – 19.99s for Silver, bringing an end to his season.



16/10/2026

There is a saying that greatness leaves a trail. In 2026, Nigeria’s men left their mark, from School Records to National Records, and with continental marks firmly in their sights, they put the world on notice. In this first part of Nigeria’s Top 10 Male Athletes of 2026, we count down from numbers 10 to 6.

16/10/2026

There is a saying that greatness leaves a trail. In 2026, Nigeria’s men left their mark, from School Records to National Records, and with continental marks firmly in their sights, they put the world on notice. In this first part of Nigeria’s Top 10 Male Athletes of 2026, we count down from numbers 10 to 6.

Home Uncategorized Nigeria`s Top 10 Male Athletes in 2026 (Part 1)UncategorizedNigeria`s Top 10 Male Athletes in 2026 (Part 1)By Joshua Okeke - October 16, 2026There is a saying that greatness leaves a trail. In 2026, Nigeria’s men left their mark, from School Records to National Records, and with...