Catching them young is a prerequisite to success. At the International Youth Summit 2022 Sports Fiesta of the Church of God Mission International in CGMI, Balm of Gilead City Edo State, Eke Progress Nwakaego set herself apart as a golden girl with four gold medals and was the cynosure of all eyes with her sterling performance

The 15-year-old won gold in the 100 metres sprint, gold in the 200 metres and powered her team to gold in the 4×100 metres relay. She also won gold in Volleyball. Her blistering pace set her apart and when she moved, she ran like a cheetah.

At the closing ceremony, she was given an ovation, with many people jostling to take pictures of the golden girl, for the sake of history.

She is gifted and it is plain to see. The versatile 15 year old started her progress early. In March, she was the highest goal scorer in her school’s football event at the annual Inter-house Sports Competition. That was not enough for the highly gifted Progress, she further won three gold medals in track events. It is safe to say that she is made for gold. Everything she touches in sports turns to gold

This is time to harness this gift and set her on a part of stardom, to represent the country in the near future, perhaps in the junior athletics.

Tobi Amusan, Favour Ofili, Nse Uko Imaobong, Grace Nwokocha, Joy Udo Gabriel, Rosemary Chukwuma, and other stars started as young girls and the result of being proactive is clear

Progress is an SS1 student of the Presbyterian Model School, Ehere Road Ogborhill Aba. It is safe to say that soon, her journey will be “from Aba to the world”.

The Athletics Federation of Nigeria and local athletics coaches should seek out this gem and make her the next Tobi Amusan or Chioma Ajunwa.

The Abia State Government and the Sports Ministry can adopt this budding star and help actualise this dream, that of winning gold medals at the bigger stage. The National Sports Festival is a good start

Eke Progress Nwakaego has risen, the golden girl is set to fly on the tracks and her target is to win gold

It was a great spectacle for the fans that thronged the Yaba College of Technology Sports Complex in Lagos on Thursday, June 17, the opening day of the 2021 National Olympic Games trial as Nigeria’s undisputed queen of the track, Blessing Okagbare and rave of the moment Enoch Adegoke gave them something that will linger in their memories for a long, long time.
The 32 year old Olympics, World and Commonwealth Games medalist stormed to a 10.63 seconds finish to win the women’s 100m title.
It was her eighth National 100m title to pull clear of Endurance Ojokolo as the second most decorated sprinter in the blue ribband race after Mary Onyali who won 11 titles.
Okagbare showed a glimpse of what to expect in the semi final heat when she scorched to a 10.99 seconds finish.

Okagbare’s 10.63 seconds finish is the fastest time ever run in the national championship and the 2014 Commonwealth Games double sprint gold medal winner said she is in great form ahead of the delayed 2020 Olympic Games.
“Since the start of this season, i see myself as very ready,” she said.
“I feel healthy, stronger and like the real Blessing Okagbare again. I am really happy that this time came down today, it will boost my confidence, my faith and trust in God. I just hope this same thing happen at the Olympics.
“I have been working on everything and I hope it counts at the big stage, that’s the Olympics. I was very disappointed at my last meet when I ran 11.2, I was like this is not me, so when they mentioned the trials, I said I am going to be there, not because I just want to run, but because I really want to compete and run well.
“But above all, I am healthier and when you have good health, the confidence will be there, and I am hoping for the best in Tokyo.
“I have to go to the Olympics, do better than I did or better still replicate it, you might not need to run like this to win the Olympics, at the Games you just want to get to the finishing line.”
Another US-based athlete, Rosemary Chukwuma finished second in 11.07 while National Sports Festival winner, Grace Nwokocha finished third in 11.11 seconds.
In the absence of US-based Divine Oduduru and Raymond Ekevwo, the fans were looking up to Edo 2020 Festival duo of Alaba Akintola and Enoch Adegoke winning the trials.
Akintola however cupped an injury in the semis leaving Adegoke who raced home in a new 10.00 seconds personal best and in the process confirm his place in Team Nigeria’s flight to the Olympics in Tokyo. Adegoke thought he had made the 10.05 seconds entry standard in the semifinal but he was just one hundreth of a second off the time as he was timed 10.06 seconds.

Other opening day results saw Fatoyinbo Gbenga and Fadekemi Olude winning the 20km Race Work for both men and women respectively.

The Tokyo Olympic trials will begin on Thursday June 17 with some of Nigeria’s best athletes aiming to either earn tickets that will get them a place in the Tokyo-bound flight or to confirm their qualification after scaling the qualification standard hurdles set by World Athletics for the Games.

The much anticipated championship will witness the best of Nigerian track and field and a celebration of the new board of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria, AFN, led by Chief Tonobock Okowa.

Complete Sports brings you 5 of the best Nigerian athletes who will grace the Day 1 of the Championship on Thursday.

Blessing Okagbare (100m):
Blessing is undoubtedly the greatest sprinter Nigeria has ever seen and she will be the cynosure of all eyes as she attempts to win her eighth 100m title.

Only former African queen of the track, the delectable Mary Onyali has won more (11) and Okagbare will be looking to pull clear of ‘The Bulldozer’ Endurance Ojokolo who dominated the national 100m scene in the late 1990s and early 2000s, winning seven national titles.

The 32 year old Okagbare holds the Nigerian record in the event (10.79) and has broken 11 seconds a staggering 21 times, 19 more than any other Nigerian sprinter.

This term, Okagbare is coming to the trials in superb form after running a personal season’s best of 10.90 seconds last May at the second leg of the Wanda Diamond League in Doha, Qatar.

The beautifully built, long striding Sapele-born sprinter has ducked inside 11 seconds three times so far this term and holds the 11.02 seconds championship record she set on her last appearance in the competition in 2016 in Sapele.

Tobi Amusan (100m Hurdles):
Since Glory Alozie retired, Tobi has proved to be her perfect successor and the former will be watching with keen attention as the reigning Commonwealth Games champion attempts to run her first sub 13 seconds race at the championships, break Angela Atede’s 12.63 seconds championships record and Alozie’s 12.44 seconds African record!.

Amusan came close to breaking the African record but for a tailwind that renders her 12.43 seconds run in Florida early this month illegal. Alozie knows it is just a matter of time before the 24 year old breaks her record.

Two years ago at the African Games, Amusan erased from history books Alozie’s 12.74 seconds Games record set 20 years earlier with a first sub 12.70 seconds (12.68) performance in the history of the competition.

This year, Amusan has broken 13 seconds an incredible seven times ( five legal) and the petite hurlder will be eyeing her third in the month of June and eight overall.

Nzubechi Grace Nwokocha (100m):
No home based athletes has run faster in Nigerian than Grace in over two decades!. The 20 year old stormed into national consciosness like a bolt out of the blues when she raced to an 11.09 personal best at the MOC Grand prix in Lagos at the end of March.

That was the fastest time on Nigerian soil in five years and the fastest by a home based athletes in over 20 years.

Grace has won every 100m race in Nigeria since 2020 but she will face her biggest test yet when she lines up against Blessing Okagbare in what local athletics watchers believe will be one of the most exciting 100m races since the late 1990s and early 2000s.

She has become one of the few home based athletes to make the qualification standard for the Olympics right here in Nigeria and the first since Ese Brume jumped 6.83m to qualify for the Rio Olympics in 2016.

Grace also set a new 22.79 seconds in the 200m to win the half lap gold at the Edo 2020 National Sports festival.

Chukwuebuka Enekwechi (Shot Put):
Chukwuebuka will be looking to win his first national title since he came into the Nigerian shot put scene in 2018 when he won the shot put and discus throw titles at the Abuja Nigeria Sports Festival.

The 28 year old came into national consciousness in early 2018 when he won a silver medal for Nigeria at the Commonwealth Games in the Gold Coast, Australia.

He has gone on to win the African Games gold medal two years ago in Rabat, Morocco and became the first and so far only Nigerian to make the last eight at World Athletics’ flagship event, the World Athletics Championships.

Annette Echikunwoke (Hammer Throw):
During his inauguration of the Tonobock Okowa led board of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria, Sports Minister Sunday Dare says ‘this is a new dawn for Nigerian athletics’.

The Minister is right. While we are having a new seed replacing the rotten one sowed by Solomon Dalung in 2017, in far away United States of America, Annette has been busy rewriting the Nigerian hammer history with a series of throw of 70m.

No Nigerian hammer thrower has ever hit the 70m mark but Annette has done it not just once but five times this season. He has now set the Nigerian record multiple times this season with the 75.49m she threw last May at the USATF Throws Fest in Tucson, Arizona the new National record.

Annette also made history as the first Nigerian woman to qualify for the Olympics in the event.

Okagbare, who is eyeing her eighth 100m title to move one clear of Enduarance Ojokolo as the second most decorated sprinter in the blue ribband event after Mary Onyali (11 titles) last competed in the competition in 2016 when she ran an 11.02 seconds Championships record in Sapele.

The Olympics, World, Commonwealth and African Games medallist will be wary of the form of Nwokocha who stormed to an 11.09 seconds personal best at the end of March on the track of the Yaba College of Technology track, venue of the 2021 National Championships.

It was the fastest 100m title by a home-based sprinter in about two decades and the fastest since Okagbare ran 11.02 seconds five years ago in Sapele.
Okagbare will also be looking to become the first Nigerian sprinter to run inside 11 seconds at the championships.

The Commonwealth Games double sprint champion is the reigning Nigerian record holder in the event ( 10.79) and the only one who has run under 11 seconds among the competitors for the 100m title.

She holds a personal season’s best of 10.90 seconds she ran at the second leg of the Wanda Diamond League in Doha, Qatar in April and has broken 11 seconds thrice this season.

She has already booked her ticket to the Olympics in Tokyo where she will be aiming to become the first Nigerian, man or woman to make a podium appearance in the most glamorous track event.

The key event for the opening day of the Championships is the 100m with both the men and women’s finals taking place in the evening after the preliminaries set to hold in the morning.

Morning events will witness the 20km women and men final, the 100m prelims, 400m heat (men and women), 1,500m women’s final and the hammer women’s final.

Also on Thursday, reigning African Shot Put king, Chukwuebuka Enekwechi will be the cynosure of all eyes as he eyes his first National title in the event.

Enekwechi, who has also secured a place in Team Nigeria’s flight to Tokyo is the only Nigerian shot putter who has hit the 21m mark and over so far this season.

Sprint hurdler Tobi Amusan will be praying for a favourable weather as she aims to challenge not only the 12.63 seconds Championships record set by Amgela Atede in June 1997 in Lagos but also the 12.44 seconds African record she came close to breaking early this month at the NACAC New Life Invitational at the Ansin Sports Complex in Miramar, Florida, USA where her 12.43 seconds finish was aided by a +4.5mps tail wind.

Amusan will also be looking to become the third athletes after Atede and Glory Alozie (twice) to run inside 13 seconds in the history of the championships.
The petite sprint hurdler’s only sub 13 seconds run in the event (12.97) was achieved in Ozoro, Delta state at the Warri Relays in 2017.