Nigeria Shines At Islamic Solidarity Games: Ogili Wins Silver, Okon-George Reaches 400m Final

Nigeria’s athletes continued to impress at the sixth Islamic Solidarity Games in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as Ogochukwu Ogili claimed silver in the women’s shot put and Patience Okon-George advanced to the final of the women’s 400m.

Ogili produced a best throw of 7.35m, narrowly missing out on gold to Bahrain’s Rooba Alomari, who recorded 7.39m in the penultimate round. Saudi Arabia’s Nadha Alhumayolani completed the podium with a throw of 6.13m, marking Nigeria’s second athletics medal of the Islamic Solidarity Games.

Earlier in the week, Nigeria’s medal tally was opened by Obiageri Amaechi in the women’s discus. Amaechi threw 56.99m to win silver, just 0.05m behind Cameroonian Nora Atim Monie, who took gold with 57.04m.

Turkey’s Ozlem Becerek secured bronze at 55.56m, while national record holder Chioma Onyekwere-Lyons finished fourth with 55.08m. Amaechi’s medal offered a timely boost following her early exit from the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.

On the track, Okon-George, a three-time national champion, finished second in her 400m semi-final in 52.92s, booking her spot in the final. She will face competitors from Morocco, Turkey, Niger, Uganda, Bahrain, and Guyana in the final at the Prince Faisal bin Fahad Stadium on Wednesday.

Nigeria’s Samuel Kure Adams is also in medal contention in the men’s javelin final. With a personal best of 77.45m and a season-best of 76.79m, expectations are high for a strong finish.

More chances for medals await in Wednesday’s men’s and women’s 4x100m relay finals.

Despite some high-profile withdrawals, including African shot put record holder Chukwuebuka Enekwechi and recently switched Divine Oladipo, Team Nigeria continues to field a strong mix of home-based and overseas athletes across sprints, relays, and field events.

In the men’s events, sprinters Chidera Ezeakor, Caleb John, and James Emmanuel are competing in short sprints, while David Akhalu, Gafari Badmus, and Ezekiel Asuquo contest long sprints. In field events, Samuel Kure and Victoria Kparika represent Nigeria in javelin.

On the women’s side, Chioma Nweke and Anita Enaruna are competing in the 100m and 200m, joined by Maria Omokwe and Iyanuoluwa Bada across sprint and relay events.

The Islamic Solidarity Games run from November 7 to 21 at the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Sports City Stadium. So far, Team Nigeria has already won 17 medals, including six gold, seven silver, and four bronze.