Team Nigeria’s hopes for a medal at the ongoing Olympic Games in Paris were dashed today as Tobiloba Amusan, the world record holder in the women’s 100m hurdles, failed to advance to the final.

Despite her status as the reigning queen of track, Amusan clocked a time of 12.55 seconds, finishing third in her heat and ninth overall in the semi-finals.

Amusan’s performance fell just short of securing a spot in the final.

She needed to finish in the top two of her heat or be among the next two fastest finishers across all semifinals to advance.

Unfortunately, the 27-year-old Nigerian star, who had been in exceptional form this season, missed out on a place in the final.

Earlier in the competition, the Nigerian men’s 4x400m relay team faced a similar disappointment.

The quartet of Ifeanyi Emmanuel Ojeli, Ezekiel Nathaniel, Chidi Okezie, and Dubem Amene was disqualified for a lane violation in their heat, despite initially finishing second with a season’s best time of 2:59.81.

Chidi Okezie during the Athletics Men’s 4x400m Relay Round of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Stade de France. (Photo by Henk Jan Dijks/Marcel ter Bals/DeFodi Images/DeFodi via Getty Images)

These setbacks mark a disappointing end to Nigeria’s track and field campaign at the Paris Olympics, with the team now out of contention for medals in both the women’s 100m hurdles and the men’s 4x400m relay events.