Nigeria’s latest men’s 100m sensation, Kayinsola Ajayi has revealed a long line of factors that helped him reach the prestigious sprints final at this year’s World Athletics Championship in Tokyo, Japan.
Sports247 reports that, although Ajayi could only finish sixth in Sunday’s epic final, the burgeoning athlete marked his 21st birthday in style by becoming the first Nigerian in 18 years to reach the competition’s last stage, following Olusoji Fasuba’s historic achievement at Osaka 2007.
Back then, Fasuba had also made his mark on Japanese soil, as he ran 10.07 to finish fourth in the 2007 final, but Ajayi’s 10.00 on Sunday was only good enough to give him sixth place.
The youngster from Auburn University in the USA, who clocked 9.93 just a day earlier in the semi-final, ended the race of his life without reaching any podium spot, which were taken by Jamaica’s duo of Oblique Seville (977) and Kishane Thompson (9.82) as well as Noah Lyles of USA.
However, Ajayi is still relishing the delight he had rubbing shoulders with global 100m’s big names and said: “I feel great about putting my name in the books of history, and I’m grateful to God. I also thank my coach for putting hope on me and trusting me up to this stage.
“If he didn’t believe in me, he won’t be there for me. He trusted me like I can rule the world, and we worked together. So, I’m very grateful to him.”
Ajayi, who has a personal best of 9.88 in the 100m, 20.93 in the 200m, and 6.48 in the 60m indoors, equally revealed how his coach encouraged him with motivational words that spurred him to give his best and run faster in Sunday’s final.
He disclosed, “My coach told me, ‘Ajayi, just run your race. You don’t need to think about anyone.’ So, I just went there and did it the way he said I should do it.
“I ran my race in a controlled way, believing I could make it to the podium. I didn’t need to think about the other competitors that were there,” Ajayi pointed out.
Sports247 gathered that the 100m gold medalist at the 2023 African U20 Athletics Championship in Ndola, Zambia, and semi-finalist at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France is now being tipped to stage a bold claim for the African record before this year runs out.
