Praise Ikweki won Nigeria’s first medal at the 2025 African U-18/U-20 Athletics Championships in Abeokuta on Wednesday, clinching bronze in the boys’ U-18 high jump event, Bold Sports reports.
The young Nigerian athlete came through when it mattered most, clearing 2.03 metres on his final attempt to earn a place on the podium. Competing in front of home fans at the MKO Abiola Sports Complex, Abeokuta, Ikweki ensured Team Nigeria started Day 1 of the competition with a medal.
Fellow Nigerian athlete, Melvin Oddo, also competed in the high jump but missed out on the medals.
Elsewhere on the track, Nigeria’s sprinters began their campaign strongly, with a dominant showing in the U-18 100m heats.
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In the boys’ event, all three entrants advanced to the semifinals. Clifford James placed second in heat one with a time of 11.44s, finishing behind South Africa’s Mukona Manavhela, who won in 11.38s. Adeniji Adeola claimed victory in heat two with an impressive time of 11.08s, ahead of Algeria’s Yasser Bouhadila. In the final heat, Destiny Chinedu Egbon clocked 10.85s to finish second behind South Africa’s Jayden Fourie, who ran the fastest overall time of 10.65s.
The Nigerian girls were even more dominant in the U18 100m heats, winning all three races. Mariam Jegede opened with a 12.13s win in heat one. Miracle Ezechukwu followed up with the fastest time of the day, storming to victory in heat two in 11.79s. Chigozie Rosemary Nwankwo rounded off the sweep with a 11.99s win in heat three.
In the U-20 category, Saliu Toyeeb ran 10.90s to place third in his 100m heat, while Success Oyibu impressed in the women’s event, winning her race in 11.87s ahead of Ivory Coast’s Lou Yonan. Lucy Nwankwo also qualified for the semi-final, running powered a new Personal Best (PB) of 11.80s (-0.5) to win her heat ahead of South Africa’s Hannat Hope Vermaak, second in 12.00s, while Botswana’s Mhutsiwa Amantle was third in 12.45s.
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