‘Gold, Silver And Bronze Have I All’ – Olayinka Olajide’s Breakout Games

• Won gold in the women’s 4x400m relay, silver in the 200m, and bronze in the 100m
• Became the first Nigerian woman in 13 years to win a 100m medal at the African Games
• Set a personal best of 23.18s in the 200m final, finishing second behind Gambia’s Gina Bass

Eko Hot Blog reports that heading into the 2023 African Games in Ghana, Olayinka Olajide was a relatively unknown name in Nigerian athletics. However, the 21-year-old sprinter made a resounding statement, etching her name in the history books as one of the breakout stars of the Games.

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In what was her first international appearance for Nigeria, Olajide achieved an extraordinary feat, winning gold, silver, and bronze medals across various events, a rare accomplishment that few athletes can boast of at a single championship.

Olajide’s journey began with a bronze medal in the women’s 100m final, becoming the first Nigerian woman in 13 years to win a medal in the event at the African Games since the Maputo Games in 2011. Her bronze was hard-earned, as she nicked Madagascar’s Claudine Njarasoa at the finish line by a mere thousandth of a second.

Not content with bronze, Olajide upgraded to silver in the 200m final, clocking a personal best of 23.18s (-2.6) to finish second behind Gambia’s Gina Bass, who claimed gold in 23.14s.

“I think right now I will give myself 100/100 because this is my first international competition, and I’m going home with gold, silver, and bronze. I’m not going home empty-handed. My coach put in the work, and I executed, so I’m glad I did it,” Olajide told Making of Champions.

However, her crowning achievement came in the women’s 4x400m relay, where she ran the second leg in the quartet that also featured Justina Eyakpobeyan, Moforehan Abinusawa, and Tobi Amusan. Their collective effort secured the coveted gold medal, completing Olajide’s remarkable medal haul at the Games.

“I feel so blessed, that’s the word. I will just say hard work pays because we put in a lot of work into the 4x100m. We started training from Abuja, and we continued here (Ghana). We were so determined to get the work done, and we also did some more work on baton exchange before the race, and we went there,” Olajide said.

While she admitted to the challenge of racing against the experienced Gina Bass, who beat her twice in the 100m and 200m finals, Olajide’s coaches instilled in her the mindset to make her opponents work for their victories.

Olajide’s journey to Accra began at the national trials in February, where she ran the fastest time by a Nigerian woman this year, taking the women’s 100m title with a new personal best of 11.19s.

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With her breakout performances at the African Games, Olajide has set her sights on the upcoming African Athletics Championships in Cameroon in June and, ultimately, the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where she hopes to continue her remarkable ascent on the international stage.

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