Nigerians have taken to social media to pour encomiums on Tobi Amusan, the World record holder Nigerian athlete, after she missed the podium in the 100m hurdles finals of the World Athletics Championships.
The defending champion unexpectedly finished 6th in a time of 12.62 seconds at the ongoing championship in Budapest, Hungary.
Jamaican Athlete Danielle Williams is the new world women’s 100m hurdles champion with a season’s best of 12.43 seconds, while Jasmine Camacho-Quinn won silver in 12.44 seconds and Keni Harrison clinched bronze in 12.46 seconds.
Despite the outing, Nigerians have trooped to social media to praise Amusan for her efforts in the championship, amid doping controversies she has been facing in recent times.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter) to praise the Nigerian sprinter, a user @Yomiable tweeted“Super proud of you @Evaglobal01 Tobi Amusan 👏🏿. The entire Yoruba race worldwide and Nigeria appreciate you, not only when you win gold and break records but always for the incredible person and athlete you are. The name Tobi Amusan is eternally written in gold.”
Also, a popular activist Aisha Yesufu wrote, “Dear Tobi Amusan @Evaglobal01, you are my champion. The biggest win this year was that you came out after the investigation with your head held high and clean. Today is a little setback. You will be coming back stronger, girl! Failure is not falling down, it is staying down, and God willing, you will bounce back with another world record. See you at the top once again!”
Another user, Dr. Joe Abah, tweeted, “Don’t worry yourself. Tobi Amusan will be back. The Naija spirit never dies.”
“We are with you Tobi Amusan, you will be back better and stronger,” @Muhazeen tweeted.
@Toyin_Ibitoye wrote, “For all the distractions before the World Championships, making it to the final is as good as a podium finish….better luck next time Tobi Amusan @Evaglobal01. You are still our World Champion and World Record Holder.”
“So proud of Tobi Amusan. She made the final and finished 6th. A week ago, her fate was still uncertain whether she was going to defend her title or not, but she showed up. Nigeria is proud of you Tobi 👏🏽🇳🇬. We will go again next year 💪🏽” @airendegregory opined.
