Nigeria’s Blessing Okagbare stormed to victory on Monday with a new Game record of 10.85 seconds in the Women’s 100m final of the ongoing 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland.
She raced beyond Veronica Campbell-Brown in the second half to comfortably take the gold at Hampden Park.
Victory eases the memory of London 2012 where the 25-year-old established a new personal best of 10.92 seconds in the 100 m semi-final but placed eighth in the final with a run of 11.01 seconds.
The Nigerian, who will also contest the 200m and long jump, stayed relaxed to power past experienced Jamaicans, Campbell-Brown and Kerron Stewart, who finished second and third in 11.03secs and 11.07secs, in the last 50m.
“I’m so excited right now,” Okagbare told BBC Sport. “I’m just happy I was here to put on a show.
“The difference was the execution and stay patient. The coach was like ‘I don’t want you to go out there and rush anything. Stay as patient as you can’. And that was what I did, and after 70m it just got a lot easier.”
England’s Aisha Philip, who finished fourth, said that she was proud of her own effort.
“It definitely is (a cruel position). Fourth is always first loser as they say,” said Philip. “But the fact that I can compete with these girls, I know that there’s a lot more to come. I’m so proud of myself. I’ll take it on the chin and say ‘that was a really good race’.
“It’s my first Commonwealth Games and my cousins are here playing netball, so I can take that.”
Minister of Sports, Dr. Tanmmy Danaagogo, has expressed joy over Okagbare’s victory, “I am really very excited at this victory for Nigeria.
“Blessing Okagbare, like our other medallists, has really made Nigeria proud.
“Nigerians are very happy that we are doing well.”
