Having competed at Paris 2024 Olympics, Nigerian champion has quit athletics at a young age after fulfilling a lifelong dream of becoming an Olympian.
American-born Nigerian champion Dubem Amene has announced his retirement from athletics at age 21 following the disqualification of the men's 4x400m relay squad from Paris 2024 Olympics final.
Amene was part of the Nigerian quartet of Ifeanyi Ojeli, Ezekiel Nathaniel, and Chidi Okezie to have qualified for the 4x400m final, having finished second in heat 2 with a Season's Best of 2:59.81.
Unfortunately, their joy was cut short as they were disqualified from competing in the final for an adjudged lane infringement by Ojeli, who ran the first leg, before handing over the baton to Nathaniel.
Following the unfortunate news, Amene who won the national title at the Nigerian Olympic trials in Benin earlier this year announced he'll be quitting the sport to pursue a career in finance since he has fulfilled his lifelong dream of becoming an Olympian.
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The 21-year-old graduated from the University of Michigan in June with a degree in Economics and will now join the workforce.
Amene started competing for Nigeria in 2021 and was a member of the mixed 4x400m relay squad at the delayed Tokyo 2021 Olympics, where they qualified for the semifinals.
He alongside Nathaniel, Patience George, and Imaobong Nse Uko finished sixth in the mixed relay at the 2022 World Championships in Oregon and is a two-time African championships finalist.
He has a career Personal Best (PB) of 45.36s (third fastest by a Nigerian this season) and was one of the country's most consistent quarter-milers in 2024.