Nigerian high jumper Temitope Adeshina has been named among the 10 women’s semifinalists for the prestigious 2026 The Bowerman Award following a remarkable collegiate season with Texas Tech.
The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced the women’s semifinalists on Wednesday, with Adeshina earning recognition alongside Jane Hedengren (BYU), Adaejah Hodge (Georgia), Sanu Jallow-Lockhart (Arkansas), Axelina Johansson (Nebraska), Alyssa Jones (Stanford), Aaliyah McCormick (Oregon), Hana Moll (Washington), Dejanea Oakley (Georgia) and Shenese Walker (Florida State).
Adeshina, who hails from Offa, Kwara State, enjoyed a flawless collegiate campaign, sweeping the NCAA Division I indoor and outdoor high jump titles to complete an undefeated season.
The 22-year-old successfully defended her NCAA indoor crown in March with a clearance of 1.97m, a mark that led the nation indoors this year and placed her joint fifth on the all-time collegiate indoor list.
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She followed that performance by winning the NCAA outdoor title with a clearance of 1.96m, matching the best outdoor mark by any collegiate athlete this season.
Her outstanding campaign made her one of the standout performers in collegiate athletics and earned her a place among the semifinalists for The Bowerman, regarded as the highest individual honour in U.S. collegiate track and field.
The women’s finalists will be announced on June 29, with the winner set to be unveiled in December during the USTFCCCA Convention in Grapevine, Texas.
The men’s semifinalists are expected to be announced on Thursday, with Nigerian stars Kanyinsola Ajayi and Samuel Ogazi widely tipped to make the shortlist following their record-breaking NCAA campaigns.
Ajayi capped a sensational season by winning the men’s 100m title at the NCAA Track and Field Championships in a wind-assisted 9.72s, securing his second national title of the year after claiming the NCAA indoor 60m crown earlier in the season for Auburn University.
Although aided by a 2.2 m/s tailwind, the performance ranks as the second-fastest all-conditions time in NCAA history and further established the Nigerian as one of the leading sprinters in collegiate athletics.
Ajayi had last month, broken the Nigerian 100m record, set by Olusoji Fasuba nearly two decades ago, running 9.84s in the men’s 100m at the NCAA East Regional Championships. He also won the men’s 60m title at the NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships in March after earlier breaking the Nigerian men’s 60m record set 27 years ago by Deji Aliu earlier in the month, running 6.45s.
Ogazi also produced one of the greatest performances in NCAA history, storming to the men’s 400m title in a record-breaking 43.38s for the University of Alabama, retaining the title he also won last year.
The Nigerian shattered Michael Norman’s long-standing NCAA record of 43.61s set in 2018 by 0.23s, with the stunning run also moving him to fourth on the all-time world list in the event.
He had earlier in March, won the NCAA indoors title in the men’s 400m, setting an African record of 44.57s in the process, lowering his previous record of 44.72s he ran to win the SEC Indoor Championships.
Should Ajayi and Ogazi make the men’s semifinal list, it would cap a remarkable year for Nigerian athletes in the NCAA.
Last year, Ezekiel Nathaniel became only the third Nigerian to be named a finalist for The Bowerman after an outstanding season. Before Nathaniel, only Blessing Okagbare (2010) and Divine Oduduru (2019) had reached the final three in the award’s history.
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