Okagbare wins Invitational Race in USA

Nigeria and African queen of the track,Blessing Okagbare, at the weekend began her athletics season on a bright note as she emerged victorious in the 200m at the 2016 Michael Johnson Invitational at Clyde Hart Track & Field Stadium, Texas, USA.

Okagbare won the women’s 200m in 22.87 seconds, running in a slight headwind of -0.3 m/s.

The athlete has also been confirmed as one of the big names expected to compete at the Rabat Diamond League, Morocco billed for May 22.

Similarly, former junior international, Oluwatobiloba Amusan, has made a smooth transition from the track to the field, winning the women’s Long Jump with a Personal Best at California’s Brutus Hamilton Open & Challenge meet at the weekend.

Read Also : Okagbare inspires women’s 4×100 relay to gold

This year, Amusan has shone for her school University of Texas El Paso (UTEP) but mainly in the women’s 100m Hurdles where at some point she ran the 4th fastest time in the world. However, her latest exploit in the Long Jump is another feather in a blossoming career.

Amusan’s winning mark of 6.19m (+2.5) saw her secure 9 points for her school, a jump she made at her second attempt, having opened with 6.00m.

The winning jump sees Amusan rank No.3 in the C-USA and 24th nationally. Considering Amusan’s height, it is quite remarkable seeing her get past 6m. Who knows, if she really takes it up, she could be challenging the likes of Ese Brume as one of Nigeria’s female Long Jumpers.

In fact, the Long Jump was one of the two gold medals Amusan won. She ran the second leg for her school as they powered to victory in the women’s 4x100m relay, running a time of 45.35s.

Her compatriot Florence Uwakwe, was equally part of the success story, anchoring the UTEP team that won gold

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