Nigeria women’s 4x400m relay team qualifies for world championships

Nigeria’s women’s 4×400 metres relay team has qualified for the 2026 World Relays Championships scheduled for May in Botswana after a strong performance at the MTN CHAMPS Athletics Classics in Calabar.

The Nigerian quartet of Patience Okon-George, Anita Enaruna, Treasure Okereke and Jecinter Lawrence secured the qualification after clocking 3:31.14 at the U.J. Esuene Stadium at the end of the three-day competition held from March 5 to 7.

The time moved Nigeria up to 21st in the world rankings, displacing Mexico from the qualification slots for the global relay event, which will be hosted on African soil for the first time.

Team Ethiopia finished second in the race with a time of 3:38.31, while Nigeria’s B team placed third in 3:40.50.

However, Nigeria’s men’s 4×400 metres relay team narrowly missed qualification after posting a time of 3:04.59, just under two seconds outside the required mark of 3:03.

Team Nigeria B finished second in 3:11.78, while Team Ethiopia came third with a time of 3:21.44.

Speaking after the race, Team Nigeria athlete Nathaniel Samson expressed optimism that the men’s team would still meet the qualifying mark in subsequent competitions.

According to him, the team ran between 3:04 and 3:05 during the race and he believes improved exposure to competitions will help them lower their time.

He noted that Nigerian athletes continue to give their best in representing the country, but require stronger financial support to enhance their performances.

Meanwhile, Team MTN B won the junior men’s 4×100 metres relay with a time of 43.32 seconds, ahead of Team MTN A, which finished in 43.62 seconds, while Golden Edge placed third in 44.58 seconds.

In other events, Toheebat Jimoh won the women’s 200 metres race in a personal best of 24.51 seconds, while Olaoluwa Obashola claimed the men’s 200 metres title with a time of 21.74 seconds.