Favour Ofili has broken the national record for the women’s 200 metres race as she finished first at the Tom Jones Memorial in James G. Pressly Stadium, Gainesville, Florida.
The 19-year-old dipped a sensational 21.96 seconds on the blue track on Friday to retire Blessing Okagbare’s 22.04s which was achieved at the Wes Kittley Invitational in 2018.
Alongside the national record, Ofili also became the first Nigerian woman to run under 22 seconds in a 200 metres race — only the second woman in African history.
Louisiana State University (LSU) undergraduate also shattered the US collegiate record, leapfrogging the 22.02 set by Florida’s Kyra Jefferson at the 2017 NCAA Championships.
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Kamaya Debose-Epps finished second in 22.81 seconds, while Nigeria’s Grace Nwokocha placed third, dipping at 22.89s.
Speaking after her record-making performance, Ofili said: “My body felt great going into the race. Coach {Dennis} Shaver told me before the race to just ‘Stay relaxed and execute the race plan’, and that’s what I did.
“I can’t really recall too much of the race because it was such a blur, but I knew I was the first to cross the finish line by a wide margin. When I saw the time, I was very happy and excited because it was an expectation that came to pass on God’s word proclaimed in my life. I give all the credit and glory to God.”
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The teenager is specialised in both 200 and 400-metre races. She won silver in 400 metres race of the 2019 African Games. She is also the 2019 African youth champion in the 200 and 400 metres.
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