Kanyinsola Ajayi has sent another warning shot to the sprinting world, lighting up the track at the Meeting International Sotteville-lès-Rouen.
The 20-year-old Nigerian sprinting monarch stormed to a personal best-equaling 9.92 seconds (+1.7 m/s) to win the men’s 100m and set a new meeting record at the Stade Jean Adret.
Ajayi’s explosive run dethroned the long-standing 10.02s meeting record set by Trinidad and Tobago’s Keston Bledman in 2015.
A Quality Field Humbled by Kanyinsola Ajayi
Ajayi didn’t just win, he dominated a loaded field that included:
Emmanuel Eseme (10.04s)
Mamadou Fall Sarr (10.10s)
Eugene Amo-Dadzie (10.16s)
Rohan Browning (10.16s)
Jerome Blake (10.23s)
Tsebo Matsoso (10.32s)
Jimmy Vicaut (10.36s)
Ajayi, drawn in lane five, reacted in 0.156 seconds and blazed past the pack with smooth mechanics and clinical drive-phase execution.
It was his first race since placing fourth at the NCAA Championships in Eugene, where he originally clocked 9.92s.
Fastest Nigerian Sprinter in 2025
9.92s – Equal PB
Fourth career sub-10 run
Tied for second-most sub-10s by a Nigerian
Ranks 4th on Nigeria’s all-time list
Ajayi’s current form puts him in elite company. He now shares the record of four sub-10s with Davidson Ezinwa and Seun Ogunkoya, trailing only Olapade Adeniken (5) and Divine Oduduru (6).
In terms of Nigeria’s all-time 100m list, he is now tied for 4th fastest, behind:
Olusoji Fasuba – 9.85s
Divine Oduduru – 9.86s
Godson Oghenebrume – 9.90s
Ajayi, Ogunkoya, Onwuzurike – 9.92s
A Season of Breakthroughs for Kanyinsola Ajayi
It has been a career-defining year for Ajayi.
Nigerian 100m national champion (June 2024)
Olympic semi-finalist in Paris 2024
Anchored Nigeria to 4x100m silver at African Championships
6.48s indoor PB over 60m at NCAA Indoors (March 2025)
