{"id":2076,"date":"2026-06-22T16:59:54","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T13:59:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/afn-hails-home-trained-athletes-as-nigerias-track-field-resurgence-accelerates\/"},"modified":"2026-06-22T16:59:54","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T13:59:54","slug":"afn-hails-home-trained-athletes-as-nigerias-track-field-resurgence-accelerates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/afn-hails-home-trained-athletes-as-nigerias-track-field-resurgence-accelerates\/","title":{"rendered":"AFN hails home-trained athletes as Nigeria\u2019s track & field resurgence accelerates"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nigeria\u2019s athletes who train at home have emerged as the driving force behind a renewed push in track and field, with the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) saying their recent progress shows the country is shifting back toward being a genuine continental powerhouse. The AFN highlighted relay qualification strides, strong performances at major meets and what it called a historic milestone for Africa as key indicators of that change.<\/p>\n

AFN 2nd Vice President Aku Aghazu said the outcomes across the last 12 months have confirmed the federation\u2019s decision to place deliberate investment behind athletes preparing within Nigeria rather than focusing only on those based overseas.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe real measure of an athletics programme is not how many headline performers it has abroad, but how many chances it creates for competitors training inside the country,\u201d Aghazu said. \u201cAthletes based at home are the foundation of Nigeria\u2019s athletics future, and building their pathway is a top strategic priority for this AFN leadership.\u201d<\/p>\n

The AFN described the results as \u201ctangible,\u201d pointing to a structured approach developed together with the National Sports Commission (NSC). The federation said that through a competition and preparation programme, home-based athletes were given the chance to race in three major national and international events ahead of the World Athletics Relays Championships in Gaborone, Botswana.<\/p>\n

That groundwork, the AFN added, helped Nigeria secure qualification in six relay disciplines for the World Relays. It then said Nigeria converted those achievements into three relay places for the 2027 World Athletics Championships in China.<\/p>\n

Key milestones in the run-up and beyond<\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Nigeria\u2019s home-based athletes took part in three major national and international events as part of a preparation plan ahead of the World Athletics Relays Championships in Gaborone, Botswana.<\/li>\n
  2. Nigeria qualified for six relay events at the World Relays and later turned that into three relay berths for the 2027 World Athletics Championships in China.<\/li>\n
  3. The mixed relay team delivered a landmark breakthrough, making Nigeria the first African nation to earn a spot at the Mixed 4x100m Relay for the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship.<\/li>\n
  4. The inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship is scheduled to be held in Budapest, Hungary, in September 2026.<\/li>\n
  5. Before the World Relays, a squad made up largely of home-based athletes recorded strong performances at the Solidarity Games in Saudi Arabia.<\/li>\n
  6. Home-grown athletes also formed the core of Team Nigeria at the CAA Senior Athletics Championships in Accra, Ghana.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The AFN also pointed to the mixed relay qualification as its most notable \u201cfirst for Africa,\u201d describing it as Nigeria\u2019s historic entry into the Mixed 4x100m Relay at the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest next September.<\/p>\n

    Among the athletes the federation says have come through this home-based development programme are Chidera Ezeakor, Tejiri Godwin, Miracle Ezechukwu, Maria Thompson, Rosemary Nwankwo, Nathaniel Samson, Sikiru Adeyemi, Asuquo Ezekiel, Esther Okon, Gafari Badmus and Toheebat Jimoh.<\/p>\n

    Aghazu said the AFN is working to widen competition pathways, strengthen athlete support and deepen partnerships with schools. He added that prize money at the National Trials\u2014reportedly for the first time in many years\u2014will be directed not only to home-based athletes but also to standout coaches.<\/p>\n

    Infrastructure work is also underway, with the AFN stating that the athletics facility in Sagamu, Ogun State is being fully refurbished under NSC supervision. The federation said Babcock University has joined the project to offer scholarships and additional developmental assistance for athletes.<\/p>\n

    Aghazu credited the NSC, headed by Mallam Shehu Dikko and Hon. Bukola Olopade, for what he described as timely fund releases, ongoing athlete grants and the return of structured, periodic camping programmes for elite home-based athletes. He noted that the camping model is being reintroduced for the first time in more than a decade.<\/p>\n

    \u201cNigerian athletics will not be built by, or depend solely on, training camps outside the country,\u201d Aghazu said. \u201cIt will be constructed on tracks, fields, schools and communities across Nigeria\u2014from Anambra to Lagos, Kaduna to Akwa Ibom, and Ogun State to Edo State\u2014where promising young athletes are given the chance to dream, grow and succeed.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Nigeria\u2019s athletes who train at home have emerged as the driving force behind a renewed push in track and field, with the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) saying their recent progress shows the country is shifting back toward being a genuine continental powerhouse. The AFN highlighted relay qualification strides, strong performances at major meets and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2075,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"AFN Applauds Home-Trained Track Athletes\u2019 Rise in Nigeria","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"AFN says Nigeria\u2019s home-trained track stars are powering a track & field resurgence, boosting relay qualification, standout meet r","mma_seo_breadcrumb_text":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_url":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_hide_ui":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_labels":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2076","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nAFN Applauds Home-Trained Track Athletes\u2019 Rise in Nigeria<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"AFN says Nigeria\u2019s home-trained track stars are powering a track & field 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Over four years, she helped evolve the platform from a simple blog into one of South Africa\u2019s leading independent entertainment news sites. Following ZAlebs\u2019 transition to Celebrity Worx in 2016, Zibuyile was promoted to Executive Editor, recognized for her sharp audience insight and ability to match editorial with branded content. Highlights of her time include a Bookmark Award nomination, judging TLC\u2019s Next Great Presenter, reporting from the MTV EMAs, and building partnerships with radio stations like YFM, Cliff Central, and Good Hope FM. Her editorial work also expanded to include fast-growing digital verticals\u2014such as lifestyle tech, online entertainment, and gambling-related content\u2014tailored to evolving reader interests and brand opportunities.","sameAs":["https:\/\/za.linkedin.com\/in\/zibuyile-dladla-9a26628a"],"url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/author\/zibuyile-dladla\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2076","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2076"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2076\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2075"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2076"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2076"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2076"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}