Despite suspension, World Athletics ranks Okagbare in top ten for 2021, ditto Amusan and Brume
Tobi Amusan and Ese Brume are also ranked among the top 10 in their events
By
Olukayode Thomas
Fleet-footed Nigeria queen of track Blessing Okagbre ended the 2021 season on a high despite serving a suspension for testing positive for growth hormone.
In the 2021 world ranking just released by the global governing body of athletics, Okagbare is ranked the ninth-best women sprinter in the world.
Okagbare accumulated 1224 points in 2021, her time of 10.89 seconds returned at Bregyo Athletics Center, Hungary was her season’s best performance.
Peradventure if her B sample comes negative and she is eligible to compete in the 2022 season, being ranked top ten by the World Athletics guarantee her a chance of getting a lane in the highly competitive and lucrative World Athletics Diamond League.
Okagbare shares the honour of being ranked ninth in the world with American Twanisha Terry who also has a season’s best of 10.89 returned at Cushing College Stadium in Texas.
Jamaica Elaine Thompson-Herah is ranked number in the world in 100m, fellow Jamaican Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is ranked number two and Shericka Jackson also a Jamaican is ranked number three in the world.
No other Nigeria is ranked in the top 50 but Rosemary Chukwuma is ranked 67th in the world for her time of 11.18 sec at the Nigeria trial Yaba College of Technology Stadium last year.
A finalist at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games last year Tobi Amusan is ranked number three in the world in 100m hurdles.
Amusan accumulated 1395 points in the 2021 season to achieve the feat. The world leader in 100m hurdles is Puerto-Rican Jasmina Camacho-Quinn with 1433 points, second is America Kendra Harrison 1398 points.
Ese Brume no doubt has the best jump in women long jump last year, 7.17m but in the World Athletics ranking for 2021 Brume is ranked fifth.
Brume's not too impressive ranking considering that she has the best jump in the world could be due to her inconsistency in the circuit, she has only 1331 points.
Serbia Ivana Spanovia is ranked number one in the world in women long jump with 1407 points, German Malaika Mhambo is ranked number two with 1403 points and Ukraine Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk is ranked number three with 1359 points.
The new kid on our sprint block who made the finals of the men 100m in Tokyo Enoch Adegoke is ranked 22 in the world.
Adegoke shares the honour of being ranked 22 in the world with World and Olympics medalist Justin Gatlin.
In women 200m Favour Ofili is ranked 16th in the world and Grace Nwokocha 24th in the world.
Shot-Putter Chuwkwuebuka Enekwechi whose act of indiscretion made Team Nigeria trend for the wrong reasons at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics is ranked 12th in men shot-put.
400m men and women used to one event Nigerian sprinters dominated for decades but the fastest Nigerian men in 2021 Chidi Okezie is ranked 90th in the world and Favour Ofili the fastest woman is ranked 67th in the world.
