Ranking the Top 5 greatest Nigerian Athletes of all time

While Nigeria boasts of so many memorable times in athletics, the country's finest times on the track and field came at the Olympics games in Barcelona, Spain in 1992 and Atalanta, USA in 1996.

On the Olympic scene, Nigeria boast of 27 medals, 14 of which came from athletics: 2 golds, 5 silvers and 7 bronzes.

Unfortunately, the country has struggled to grab athletics medals from the Olympics in the last three editions. 

Ese Brume's bronze medal in the long jump at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics became the first athletics victory since long jumper Blessing Okagbare and Nigeria's women's 4x100 relay team won silver medals at the 2008 Beijing Games in China.

Throwing it back to the first time Nigeria competed on the World scene, which athletes go down as the country's greatest of all time?

5. Mary Onyeali

Nkemdilim “Mary” Onyali-Omagbemi was a 5x Olympian who represented Nigeria at the Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992, Atalanta 1996, Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004 Olympic Games.

Her greatest successes came at Barcelona where she ran with the Women's 4×100m relay team to clinch bronze, and at Atalanta four years later, where her solo effort at the Women's 200m earned her a second Olympic bronze medal.

Onyeali was a 6-time All Africa Games champion, and also won two Women's 4×100m gold medals at the IAAF World Cup and Commonwealth Games in 1994. She as well won another gold in the Women's 100m at the same Commonwealth Games in 1994. Her incredible successes guarantee her place on the list of the

4. Blessing Okagbare

In the history of the Olympic games, only six Nigerians (1 gold, 2 silvers and 3 bronzes) have gotten medals in individual athletics events. Blessing Okagbare is one of those.

Before the unfortunate end to her admirable career, Okagbare won a silver medal in the long jump at the Beijing 2008 games and was multiple-award-winning medalist in the long jump, 100m, 200m and 4x100m events at the IAAF World Championships, Commonwealth games and All-Africa Games.

Her 100m best of 10.79 made her the African record holder for the event until it was eclipsed in 2016. With 22.04seconds, she is also the second-fastest African woman over the 200m behind Christine Mboma who ran an African record of 21.78 seconds in 2021.

3. Falilat Ogunkoya

Ogunkoya's name continues to travel in time as the first Nigerian to win an individual track and field medal at the Olympics, cementing her legend as one of the greatest Nigerian athletes of all time. 

With two Olympic medals to her name: a silver in the 4x400m relay and bronze in the Women's 400m, Ogunkoya is one of the very few Nigerian to have won multiple medals at the Games. 

Her personal best and African record of 49.10, which she ran to clinch bronze in the Women's 400m at the 1996 Summer Olympics, is currently the twelfth fastest 400m time of all time.

2. Chioma Ajunwa

First, a footballer for Nigeria's Super Falcons and then an Olympian, Ajunwa was Nigeria's first Olympic gold medalist.

The multi-talented athlete who played football briefly competed in the 100m sprint before switching over to the long jump, where she won the gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games. Her medals haul makes her easily one of the greatest Nigerian athletes of all time.

She competed at the 1990 Commonwealth Games, winning a bronze medal in the 4x100m relay, and competed at the African Championships in 1989 and the All Africa Games in 1991 where she won gold medals in the long jump.

To date, Ajunwa remains the only woman to compete at both the FIFA Women's World Cup as a footballer and the Olympics as a track and field athlete.

1. Enefiok Udo-Obong

Udo-Obiong will forever be grateful that American sprinter Antonio Pettigrew admitted that he had cheated at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games by using performance-enhancing drugs.

Udo-Obong was amazing as Nigeria earned a silver medal in the Men's 4x400m relay in 2000. That medal was later upgraded to gold after Pettigrew's confession and USA disqualification.

Udo-Obong went on to win a bronze medal at the same event four years later at the Olympic Games in Athens, making him one of the few Nigerians to have won multiple medals at the summer games. He makes the ranking as the No 1 on the Top 5 greatest Nigerian athletes of all time list.