A Nigerian, Tobi Amusan, has broken the World Record to Win Gold at the World Athletics Championship in Oregon on Monday.
This feat breaks Nigeria’s 21-year-old record after Tobi Amusan set a new African record to become the first athlete to bring gold home, clocking 12.12 seconds on the Hayward Field, in a record astonishing semi-final finish.
While this is a great showing at the Championships, Tobi Amusan’s win will not be recorded as a world record, because of the following 2.5 meters per second win.
Jamaica’s Britany Anderson grabbed silver in 12.23sec, coming second and former Olympic champion Jasmine Camacho-Quinn of Puerto Rico clinched bronze in 12.23, taking the third position. Amusan’s jaw-dropping world record at the semi-finals, smashed the previously held best mark of 12.20secs by United States athlete Keni in 2016.
Speaking to the press after her final victory, Tobi Amusan had this to say, “Honestly, I believe in my abilities but I was not expecting a world record at these championships.” “The goal is always just to execute well and get the win. So the world record is a bonus. I knew I had it in me but I could not believe it when I saw it on the screen after the semis.”
Speaking further, she added, “Before the final, I just tried to stay calm and to do my best. I took a deep breath knowing that I have some goals to accomplish and it worked pretty well. I knew it was very fast but not this fast.”
Tobi Amusan got off to a scorching start and was smooth-sailing into her stride after the first hurdle, building a clear lead and then pulling away ahead of Anderson and the fast-closing Camacho-Quinn.
Amusan had left Harrison in her slipstream at the semi-finals and was once again shown a clean pair of heels by the Nigerian star athlete in the final. Amusan’s win has sparked conversations on social media, giving Nigerians something to rejoice over, since Tobi Amusan trumped Tokyo Olympic Medalist in Poland.
