Former Nigerian Sprinter, Deji Aliu has praised current world 100 metres hurdles champion and record holder, Tobi Amusan, on her current achievement of being named the 5th best woman-athlete in the world for the year, 2022.

Tobi Amusan had a great 2022, where she smashed multiple records, including running 12.12 seconds in the semi-final and then 12.06 seconds in the final, to claim the Commonwealth Games gold medal at Birmingham.

Deji Aliu, a gold medalist himself at the 2003 All Africa Games, and was part of the Nigeria’s relay team that picked up bronze at the 2004 Olympic games, said Amusan’s latest feat should come as no surprise and that it would only spur her on to do more.

“Being ranked the fifth best female athlete will mean a lot to her, it is what Nigerians were expecting, an athlete that made the final shortlist for the Women’s World Athlete of The Year Award and when it comes to among the top-ranked athlete, that is expected of her,” Aliu told The PUNCH.

“This is good motivation and will make her have higher expectations for 2023, a good morale booster for Amusan going into next year’s competitions.

“Ordinarily, Amusan’s world ranking should mean a lot to us, this year has been a very fantastic and productive year for athletics in Nigeria.”