By Daily Sports Nigeria on September 19, 2025

Udodi Onwuzurike’s hopes of reaching the men’s 200m final at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo came to an end on Thursday as the Nigerian sprinter finished seventh in his semi-final, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

Drawn in a loaded heat against defending champion Noah Lyles, Olympic gold medallist Andre De Grasse and Britain’s Zharnel Hughes, the 22-year-old faced one of the most formidable line-ups of the night.

Despite making the sharpest start in the race with a reaction time of 0.119 seconds, Onwuzurike was unable to sustain his drive over the final 100 metres, fading as the field powered to the line.

Lyles underlined his dominance by storming to 19.51s, the fastest ever semi-final performance in championship history, eclipsing his own world lead from the US trials.

Hughes followed in 19.95s to secure automatic qualification, while South Africa’s Sinesipho Dambile set a personal best of 19.97s to snatch third. Zimbabwe’s Tapiwanashe Makarawu was also in the mix, clocking 19.98s for fourth place.

Onwuzurike’s time of 20.26s left him adrift of the qualifiers and outside the non-automatic slots, bringing his championships to an early close.

Sweden’s Henrik Larsson rounded out the field in 20.32, a personal best that also proved insufficient to progress.

The result was a disappointment for Nigeria, given the promise Onwuzurike showed in the build-up.

The former World U-20 and NCAA champion entered Tokyo with a personal best of 19.76s and had advanced impressively from the heats with 20.27s, keeping Kenneth Bednarek in close view. Hopes were high that he could push through to the final and add to Nigeria’s limited track presence at these championships.

Instead, his exit leaves Ezekiel Nathaniel as the country’s sole male finalist in track events, having made history in the 400m hurdles. Tobi Amusan’s silver in the women’s 100m hurdles remains Nigeria’s only medal in Tokyo so far, and the spotlight will now shift fully to Nathaniel’s final.

For Lyles, meanwhile, the performance keeps alive his pursuit of a fourth consecutive world title in the event, a feat that would emulate Usain Bolt.

Source Punch Ng

Posted September 19, 2025

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