Olopade promises N6m for Athletic Heat 10th anniversary event

The Director-General of the National Sports Commission, Bukola Olopade, has promised N6m for the 10th anniversary of the Athletic Heat Meet.

The event takes place today, Saturday, at the Yaba College of Technology Sports Complex in Lagos.

Olopade set aside N4m for winners in the throwing events. Each of the eight event winners will get N500,000. He also allocated N2m for the logistics of the meet.

Ese Oguma, the Chief Executive Officer of Athletic Heat, thanked Olopade for his support. She said his commitment to sports development is vital. She noted that help from administrators and other stakeholders is important for improving competition standards and supporting athletes.

More than 850 athletes are expected to compete. Some of the main stars include Nigerian internationals Miracle Ezechukwu, Samson Nathaniel, and Adams Samuel Kure. The meet will feature top athletes, up-and-coming talents, and grassroots competitors as Athletic Heat celebrates ten years of promoting athletics in Nigeria.

Miracle Ezechukwu, a teenage sprinter, will run in the women’s 100m. She won three gold medals at the African U-18 and U-20 Championships in Abeokuta in 2025. This year, she has personal bests of 11.15 seconds in the 100m and 22.77 seconds in the 200m.

At the African Senior Athletics Championships in Accra, Ghana, Ezechukwu finished fourth in the women’s 100m final. She also helped Nigeria win the 4x100m relay in a championship-record time of 42.94 seconds.

Samson Nathaniel, a quarter-miler, has represented Nigeria at both the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships. He was part of the team that won gold in the 4x400m relay at the African Games in Accra. This year, he ran 45.89 seconds in the 400m at the Addis Ababa Athletics Meet. His personal best is 45.23 seconds, and he is set to compete in the men’s 400m.

Adams Samuel Kure will lead the field events in the javelin. He won bronze at the Islamic Solidarity Games in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in November 2025, with a throw of 76.01m. He finished behind Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem and Muhammad Yasir.

The event organizers have finished seeding and allocating bib numbers. Athletes have been told to check the Roster Athletics app for their schedules, heats, and flights.

The senior men’s 100m has 320 entries. The top 32 athletes by ranking will advance to four finals. The top 24 athletes will qualify for the finals in the senior women’s 100m. Hurdle finals will be limited to six athletes each due to equipment availability. The long jump will have two flights. Under-age athletes in the throwing events will have their results recorded but will not be eligible for prizes.