Ochonogor, Akindunbi shine as Commonwealth Games trials hit day 2

By JOE APU

Prestina Ochonogor and Olaoluwa Akindunbi emerged among the standout performers on the opening day of the 2026 Commonwealth Games National Trials at the Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH) Sports Complex in Lagos.

With national record holder Ese Brume absent from the competition, US-based Ochonogor claimed victory in the women’s long jump after recording a leap of 6.57m to finish ahead of the field.

In the men’s triple jump final, Arena Academy athlete Olaoluwa Akindunbi produced a personal best mark of 16.08m to secure first place and underline his growing status as one of the country’s promising jumpers.

Delta State’s Vivian Obadiah also delivered an impressive performance, winning the women’s 5,000m event in a personal best time of 17:24.85.

The opening day also witnessed the commencement of the men’s and women’s 100m events, with several of Nigeria’s leading sprinters taking to the track in the preliminary rounds and heats as they chase places on Team Nigeria for the Commonwealth Games.

Speaking during the event, Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) President Tonobok Okowa welcomed athletes and officials to Lagos and apologised for the one-day postponement of the trials, which were initially scheduled to begin on Saturday.

Okowa urged the athletes to give their best performances and assured them of the federation’s continued support throughout the competition.

Also present at the trials was the Director-General of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Bukola Olopade, who commended the athletes for their performances and praised the emergence of young talents.

Olopade described the young competitors as the future of Nigerian athletics and lauded the AFN for its commitment to grassroots sports development.

AFN First Vice-President Abubakar Ladan Zurmi expressed confidence that the remaining two days of competition would produce more exciting performances, noting that the athletes were prepared to give their all in pursuit of qualification.

Zurmi defended the federation’s decision to postpone the trials by a day, explaining that the same consideration would have been extended to home-based athletes if they had encountered similar force majeure circumstances that affected some foreign-based competitors.

The trials continue on Monday with more events expected to produce fierce competition as athletes battle for spots on Nigeria’s Commonwealth Games team.