Tobi Amusan finishes second in Eugene’s favorite tracks, while Kayinsola Ajayi reigns on familiar ground

Two of Nigeria’s brightest medal prospects at the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland – Tobi Amusan and Kanyinsola Ajayi – achieved contrasting results on ‘Eugene’s favorite tracks’, where both achieved the highest records so far in their respective careers.

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Sports247 reports that Amusan could only finish second on the same tracks where she set her women’s 100m hurdles world record in 2022, while Ajayi equaled her new Nigerian men’s 100m best on the ground where she broke it just a few weeks ago.

Amusan and Ajayi achieved mixed results at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, USA, on Saturday, as they competed in the ninth meeting of the Wanda Diamond League, a week after both stars skipped Nigeria’s Commonwealth Games selection competition at Yaba College of Technology, to focus on the international circuit.

However, while Ajayi justified his decision by achieving another remarkable first place finish that almost gave him another Nigerian record, Amusan only took another step in his continued and steady progression of results ahead of the Commonwealth Games, where he is a two-time gold medalist in the 100 metres.

A report from track and field’s world governing body, World Athletics media revealed in part: “US Olympic champion Russell also impressed as she equaled the meet record by winning the 100m hurdles, clocking 12.24 (0.8m/s), the fifth-fastest time of her career.

“She beat Tobi Amusan of Nigeria by a tenth of a second. Amusan was defeated on the track where she set her world record of 12.12 in 2022, a mark Russell was just 0.02 away from equaling in Xiamen in May.

“Kayinsola Ajayi won the 100 meters outside of the Diamond League, three weeks after his NCAA title on the same track. This time, the 21-year-old clocked 9.84 (0.1 m/s) to equal his own Nigerian record, got off to a great start and maintained his lead to beat Jamaica’s world champion Oblique Sevilla, who clocked 9.89.”