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Two years ago, Samuel Ogazi was a teenager watching the Paris Olympic 400m final from the inside lane. Now, at 20, he’s Nigeria’s national record holder, a Commonwealth champion, and the fourth-fastest man ever over that distance. He’s also part of a wave of young Nigerian talent set to headline the country’s push at the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship, September 11–13 in Budapest.
While Tobi Amusan — the world-record holder in the 100m hurdles and owner of Nigeria’s first-ever World Championships gold — remains the team’s most decorated name, this Budapest squad leans heavily on athletes barely out of their teens. Ogazi’s 43.38-second national record in June, followed by a 44.25 Commonwealth gold in Glasgow, has made him one of the sport’s most closely watched prospects. Sprinter Kayinsola Ajayi, 21, has had an equally startling rise: three Nigerian record-equaling runs in 2026, two Diamond League wins, and a head-to-head victory over reigning 100m world champion Oblique Seville — twice.
On the women’s side, 21-year-old Ella Onojuvwevwo became the first Nigerian woman in over two decades to break 50 seconds in the 400m, then backed it up with an African indoor record and a Commonwealth bronze medal in Glasgow. Alongside 400m hurdler Nathaniel Ezekiel — currently ranked No. 4 in the world — the group gives Nigeria its deepest bench of young talent in years, competing against a field stacked with Olympic and world champions including Mondo Duplantis, Noah Lyles, and Faith Kipyegon.
Nigeria’s qualification window stays open until September 2, with Temitope Adeshina and a relay pool including Favour Ashe and Udodi Onwuzurike still chasing spots. Whoever makes the trip will be competing for a share of the event’s $10 million prize purse — $150,000 to each individual gold medallist — at the National Athletics Centre, built for the 2023 World Championships on the banks of the Danube.
