In contrast with several sports administrators, analysts, pundits, officials, coaches, ex-internationals and fans celebrating the efforts of Kanyinsola Ajayi and Tobi Amusan at the ongoing Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, I beg to strongly disagree and emphatically declare that ‘bronze is not just good enough.’
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Sadly, for me, the narrative from Glasgow 2026 is that Nigeria has simply settled for the option of clinching bronze and we celebrate placing third as a major achievement. It’s something that the Super Eagles have perfected, in becoming ‘record extending bronze medal winners’ at the Africa Cup of Nations.
So comfortable we are in winning bronze that the last one the Super Eagles achieved in Morocco, after defeating Egypt at AFCON 2026 was celebrated as if we had won the trophy itself. Fortunately, I read a column by former captain, Sunday Ogorchukwu Oliseh slamming everyone who orchestrated the penchant to celebrate third place like an oustanding achievement – considering that he wept for finishing second in the year 2000 on home soil! Ironically, though, 24 years later, another set got national honours for emerging as runners-up in Cote d’Ivoire!
So low our standards have fallen, to the extent that we are now celebrating third place on the mountain top, and the ailment that afflicted the football team on numerous occasions at the AFCON is now worming its way into athletics, thereby making it passable for Ajayi and Amusan to clinch bronze and we celebrate it like it’s the Holy Writ for Nigerian sports.
While both athletes did not openly complain about rain and cold on the nights of Wednesday and Thursday, they both had veiled excuses for their inability to clinch the much expected gold that we felt they are both capable of bringing back home – but they both failed to live up to the billing.
So ironic, for me, it was seeing Amusan fall short in third place, despite being the reigning world record holder and dominating the women’s 100m hurdles this season on the international circuit heading into Glasgow 2026.
Her roster reeled out breaktaking results – including her last race before the final (12.19 seconds – July 30, 2026 at the Glasgow Games (wind-assisted +3.8 m/s, fastest heat in Commonwealth history) … only to later run 12.60 seconds in the final and claim bronze.
Before then, the record books show in reverse mode: 12.34 seconds – July 2026: Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon (finished second).12.28 seconds – June 2026: Rabat Diamond League (equalled her season’s best and broke meeting record).12.28 seconds (or 12.27–12.28 range) – June 28, 2026: Paris Diamond League at Stade Charléty (won the final). So, why coulnd’t she win the Glasgow 2026 final?
She complained about a fall she suffered during the pre-Commonwealth Games training camp in Aberdeen and she was in pain up till Thursday night, when cold weather in the stadium compounded her woes. Were that to be true, how come she enacted a wonderful finish in the semi-final? Did the weather get so adverse between the semi-final and final to the extent that she could no longer cope?
Same applies to Kanyinsola, who entered the Games with Nigeria’s best ever time in the men’s 100m and the second best among Commonwealth sprinters in the year 2026; as his national record of 9.83 seconds, which he acheived twice within a month, made us believe he could jolly well turn out to be the first Nigerian sprinter to clinch the Commonwealth men’s 100m gold medal.
Incidentally, Ajayi’s current personal best would have earned him the Games’ men’s 100m gold medal in all the last six editions, as seen on the roll call since 2002 in Manchester, where Kim Collins of Saint Kitts & Nevis won it with 9.98 seconds, while 2006 in Melbourne, Australia had Asafa Powell of Jamaica in 10.03.
At Delhi 2010, it was Lerone Clarke of Jamaica with 10.12, followed by Glasgow 2014 with Kemar Bailey-Cole of Jamaica (10.00), Gold Coast 2018, Akani Simbine of South Africa (10.03) and Birmingham 2022, Ferdinand Omanyala of Kenya (10.02). But Glasgow 2026 turned out to be a different kettle of fish, as Omanyala first fell short and Ajayi followed suit at the last hurdle.
While our powerlifters and weightlifters were dangling gold medals down their chests like a fashion parade, our sprinters flattered to deceive.
Nigeria has never won a gold medal in the men’s 100m at the Commonwealth Games, with the country’s best still being three silver medalists – Davidson Ezinwa (10.05 seconds at Auckland 1990); Uchenna Emedolu (Manchester 2002; 10.11) and Olusoji Adetokunbo Fasuba (Melbourne 2006; 10.11). Sadly, we have opted to be retrogressive by hailing Ajayi as the first Nigerian since Fasuba in 2006 to make a podium spot in the Commonwealth Games’ men’s 100m … such glorious consolation.
Interestingly, heading into Glasgow 2026, Emmanuel Eseme of Cameroon was ranked fifth in the Commonwealth. Before the Games began, Ajayi’s Nigerian record of 9.84 seconds was followed by South Africa’s Bayanda Walaza, ranked third overall with 9.89s, followed by Favour Ashe (9.93s), then Eseme’s 9.94 seconds, with a second place finish at the Golden Gala Pietro Mennea in Rome, Italy on June 4th.
However, Eseme silently kept improving with each passing race and he did not allow any hype distract his progression – 9.98 seconds – Heat 7 performance at the Paris Olympics (August 3, 2024); 9.97 seconds – Victory performance at the Resisprint International (May 13, 2026); 9.94 seconds – 2nd place finish at the Golden Gala Pietro Mennea in Rome, Italy (June 4, 2026); 9.89 seconds – semi-final heat run at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, UK (July 28, 2026); 9.83 seconds – gold medal and new Commonwealth Games/National Record in Glasgow, UK (July 28, 2026).
Those are the kind of progressions that matter in athletics, which Nigeria’s athletes failed to exploit as they flew towards Glasgow. While Ajayi wowed us twice with his Nigerian record, Amusan fluttered instead of soaring – 13.04 seconds – during preliminary or secondary round bracket tracking at the Games; 12.28 seconds twice Diamond League performance (matching season consistency prior to Glasgow) and 12.28 seconds earlier in the 2026 season.
The question now arises: Why can’t Nigeria’s athletes keep up the momentum they enact on the circuit and take it all the way into major competitions? The answer simply is: They always burn themselves out before major events! Sadly, it was the same tale back in the days of Chidi Imoh, Olusoji Fasuba, Davidson Ezinwa, Seun Ogunkoya, Olopade Adeniken and Oluyemi Kayode. The ladies tried well in winning two Commonwealth Games gold medals (Blessing Okagbare and Mary Onyali), but they also fell short when it mattered most at the World Championships and Olympic Games.
So, where does the solution lie? That is a million dollar question that currently defies answers, especially after the National Sports Commission (NSC) and Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) put in extra efforts to motivate our athletes with training grants and ‘instant cash rewards.’ So, since cash could not make a change, what else would? That takes me to the common last resort we highly religious Nigerians come up with … let’s pray for them.
Having stated that, as comical, lameduck or theoretical as it might appear to be, we might actually have to start considering the spiritual option to help our athletes break their gold medal jinx at the Olympic Games. If they don’t need prayers then tell us how we can prevent another athlete from falling ‘mysteriously’ in camp next time? How can we ensure they get the best weather conditions that would not inhibit their ambitions? Prayer is the key!
