Brume Wins fourth African Championships title in Douala
Ese Brume has
become the first athlete to
win four long jump titles in African
Championships history following her
exploits in Douala, Cameroon.
Winning the crown three
consecutive times – in 2014, 2016 and
2018 – had already propelled her into
an exclusive class, and going one further
at the Japoma Stadium consolidated her
position as Africa’s best in the event.
Brume had missed the last edition of
the championships held in Mauritius,
which was won by Burkina Faso’s
Marthe Koala. In Douala, the latter put
up a formidable fi ght and was not going
to relinquish her crown easily, taking
the lead with 6.72m.
She left it late, prevailing in the last
round by just one centimetre (6.73m) to
win gold. South Africa’s Danielle Nolte
took the bronze with 6.44m.
Similarly, the mixed 4x400m
was contested on day two of the
championships saw Nigeria and
Botswana engaged in a battle for
superiority, with South Africa trailing
in third until the fi nal leg when Coetzee
was handed the baton. Th e South
African champion switched gears and
in no time, overturned every defi cit
to gift South Africa their fi rst African
Championships gold in the discipline
in a time of 3:13.12. Nigeria claimed
silver (3:13.72) and Botswana bronze
(3:15.93).
Temitope Adeshina added to the
medal count by winning Silver in the
women’s High jump with a clearance
of 1.84m.
Samuel Ogazi gave it his all in the
men’s 400m fi nal, fi nishing strong
and winning the Bronze medal with a
time of 45.47s while teammate Dubem
Amene placed 7th.
In the women’s event, Nigeria’s sole
entrant Esther Elo Joseph also took a
Bronze with a time of 51.94s.
Edose Ibadin placed 6th in the
men’s 800m with a time of 1:47.95 as
Comfort James fi nished in 8th place in
the women’s race in 2:04.45.
Team Nigeria’s men’s 4x100m relay
squad made up of Alex Chukwukelu,
Emmanuel Ojeli, Alaba Akintola, and
Usheoritse Itsekiri, fi nished 2nd in
their heat, earning a spot in the fi nal.
Ghana won the race with a time of
39.16s.
Th e Nigerian women’s 4x100m
relay team comprising of Justina
Tiana Eyakpobeyan, Olayinka Olajide,
Adaobi Tabugbo, and Tima Godbless
won their heat, crossing the line in
43.58s.
Meanwhile, Chukwuebuka
Enekwechi has extended his
dominance on the continent to a third
successive African Championships
and did just enough to snatch the shot
put gold medal with his best eff ort of
21.14m.
Enekwechi, who is African Indoor
Record holder in the men’s Shot put
made it a hattrick of titles at the African
Senior Championships aft er extending
his dominance on the continent to six
years.
He currently has three African
Championship titles, having won in
Asaba 2018 and Mauritius 2022, and is
tied for the most gold medals by a male
Shot Putter in the Championships’
history.
He revealed that his major focus
now is how to put smile on faces of
Nigerians at the fast-approaching Paris
2024 Olympics Games.
