Nigeria Makes History With Double 100m Gold at Dakar 2026 Youth Olympics

Nigeria made history at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games on Sunday after Gift Bright and Rosemary Chigozie Nwankwo won gold in the men’s and women’s 100m events.

The victories made Nigeria the first country to sweep both sprint titles at the same edition of the Youth Olympic Games.

Bright claimed the men’s 100m gold in a personal best of 10.28 seconds, finishing ahead of China’s Hangyu Zhang, who clocked 10.57 seconds, while Poland’s Szymon Dolega settled for bronze in 10.61 seconds.

The victory also made Bright the first Nigerian athlete to win the men’s 100m title at the Youth Olympics.

The youngster had earlier demonstrated his impressive form in the semi-finals, winning his heat in 10.34 seconds to qualify for the final as the fastest athlete.

Nwankwo followed with another outstanding performance in the women’s 100m final, clocking 11.16 seconds to secure Nigeria’s second gold medal.

The 17-year-old finished ahead of the United Arab Emirates’ Arwa Ali, who recorded 11.41 seconds, while Qatar’s Dana Salem claimed bronze in 11.48 seconds.

Nwankwo had also dominated her semi-final heat, posting 11.53 seconds to qualify with the fastest overall time.

Her triumph made her the third Nigerian woman to win the Youth Olympic 100m title, following Josephine Omaka, who triumphed at Singapore 2010, and Rosemary Chukwuma, who won at Buenos Aires 2018.

The two victories opened Nigeria’s medal account at the Games and provided a significant boost to the country’s athletics contingent.

The Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games will continue until November 13, with Nigeria hoping to add more medals to its tally.