Amusan and other Nigerian athletes prepare to compete at the start of the 2026 World Athletics Championships in Budapest

Nigeria’s medal campaign at the inaugural World Athletics Finals Championships will begin in Budapest, Hungary on Friday 11 September 2026 with Tobi Amusan and Ella Onojuvwevwo among the country’s leading athletes in action on the opening night.

The championship will begin with the 4x100m medley relay, which also serves as the first medal, before Nigeria participates in the women’s 100m hurdles and 400m.

Nigeria’s mixed 4x100m quartet will take on Hungary, Spain, the Netherlands, Canada, Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Germany and the United States in the battle for their first medal of the championship.

Amusan is also listed among Nigeria’s mixed relay athletes.

The other members of the relay pool are Alaba Akintola, Favor Ashe, Miracle Ezechukwu, Udodi Onwuzurike and Rosemary Nwankwo.

However, Nigeria’s relay preparations have been hit by uncertainty, as Rosemary Nwankwo and Miracle Ezechukwu were denied visas.

In their absence, Tobi Amusan and Ella Onojuvwevwo will likely run alongside Favor Ashe and Kanyinsola Ajayi.

The times of the 4x100m medley relay and the women’s 400m could force Nigeria to withdraw from the relay.

In the individual event, Amusan, the former world champion, leads Nigeria’s opening charge in the semi-finals of the 100 meters hurdles, with a place in the final up for grabs.

Ella Onojuvwevwo will also begin her season in the semifinals of the women’s 400 meters.

The women’s 100m hurdles final is scheduled an hour and 16 minutes after the semi-finals, making for a potentially busy night for the Nigerian contingent.

In addition to Friday’s action, Nigeria will have further medal hopes in the men’s sprints.

Kanyinsola Ajayi will compete in the second semifinal of the men’s 100 meters on Saturday, where he will face a formidable field including Olympic champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs, South Africa’s Akani Simbine, USA’s Kenneth Bednarek, Cameroon’s African champion Emmanuel Eseme and Ackeem Blake.

The Colombian Ronal Longa and the American Ronnie Baker complete the lineup.

Onwuzurike will return to the track on Sunday for the men’s 200m, where Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo and Bednarek are among the athletes standing between the Nigerian and a place in the final.

African record holder Ezekiel Nathaniel will complete Nigeria’s individual campaign on the final day when he competes in the men’s 400m hurdles.

With many of the country’s biggest names converging on Budapest, Nigeria will be hoping their star-studded squad can turn strong individual credentials into medals at the inaugural championships.