Reigning Nigeria Shot Put record holder at 21.80m, Chukwuebuka Enekwechi will on Thursday begin his quest to throw himself into Nigeria’s history books on day seven of the ongoing 17th IAAF World Championships in Doha, Qatar, Completesports.com
No Nigerian man (and woman) has qualified for the final of the shot put in the history of the championships and Enekwechi is favoured to write a new chapter on Thursday at the Khalifa International Stadium.
The in-form Nigerian who is 10th in the IAAF top list of shot putters coming to Doha only needs to throw at least 20.90m or finish among the 12 best performers to achieve the first part of his double bid for history.
Enekwechi has hit the 21m mark and above nine times this season and should be able to scale the 20.90 qualification hurdle Thursday evening. If he makes it to the final, he will be targeting another piece of history by seeking to become the first Nigerian to hit the 22m mark which will be required to give him a chance to become the first Nigerian shot putter to win a medal in the event.
While Enekwechi is eager to throw himself into immortality, the duo of Olatoye Oyesade and Chioma Onyekwere failed to qualify for the final of the shot put and discus throw event respectively.
Olatoye’s 16.97m effort was not enough to get her into final, while Onyekwere’s new 61.38m personal best throw in the discus also was not good enough to guarantee her a place in the final.
By Dare Esan
