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When the legendary Innocent Egbunike competed at Seoul 1988, Samuel Ogazi wasn't born. The teenager has now become Nigeria's first 400m Olympic finalist in 36 years.
In his debut Olympics outing, Samuel Ogazi has ensured Nigeria is well represented after qualifying for the men's 400m final, Nigeria's first in 36 years since the legendary Innocent Egbunike.
The 18-year-old ran the race of his life against a stacked semifinal heat, blazing to a new Personal Best (PB) of 44.41s to finish third and seal his spot in the final. By doing this, he becomes the first Nigerian 400m runner to reach an Olympic final since Egbunike attained the same feat at Seoul 1988.
Ogazi has been an amazing revelation for Nigeria this season, proving with each of his races that he's a generational talent and a future world-beater with his meteoric progress.
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He moved to the United States in January with a student-athlete scholarship at the University of Alabama, where he dominated the collegiate circuit outdoors.
Having won the NCAA silver medal as an underdog, Ogazi competed at the African Championships and claimed the bronze medal, before going to a series of professional races in Europe to fine-tune his preparations for Paris 2024 Olympics.
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Ogazi's exceptional performance in Paris to make the final is a milestone achievement never before attained by a Nigerian junior athlete in Olympic history.
With his level of consistency at dropping his PB in his races, he can't be written off to produce another mind-blowing time, and perhaps surpass Egbunike's long-standing National Record of 44.10s.
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