Dakar 2026: Nwankwo, Bright win 100m Gold for Nigeria

By Tosin Omojola

Nigeria won two athletics gold medals at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games on Sunday, as Rosemary Nwankwo and Gift Bright emerged champions in the women’s and men’s 100m events.

Nwankwo clocked 11.16 seconds to win the women’s final, finishing ahead of Arwa Ali of the United Arab Emirates, who settled for silver in 11.41 seconds, while Qatar’s Dana Salem claimed bronze in 11.48 seconds.

Her victory made her the third Nigerian to win the women’s 100m title at the Youth Olympic Games, following Josephine Omaka at Singapore 2010 and Rosemary Chukwuma at Buenos Aires 2018.

However, the race was run with a wind reading of +2.4 metres per second, exceeding the legal limit of +2.0m/s for record purposes.

Bright followed with an impressive performance in the men’s final, clocking a personal best of 10.28 seconds to win Nigeria’s first-ever men’s 100m gold medal at the Youth Olympic Games.

China’s Zhang Hangyu finished second in 10.57 seconds, while Poland’s Szymon Dolega took bronze in 10.61 seconds.

Unlike the women’s final, the men’s race was run with a legal wind reading of +1.7m/s, making Bright’s time eligible for recognition as a personal best.

The double triumph marked a significant milestone for Nigerian athletics, giving the country its first Olympic gold medals at any level since Chukwuma’s victory at the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games.