By Charles Pemu 
Nigerian athlete Ezekiel Nathaniel made history at the Tokyo 2025 World Championships, delivering a historic performance in the men’s 400m hurdles final.
Nathaniel, 22, finished fourth in a time of 47.11 seconds, which shattered the Nigerian national record. His time also ranks as the second-fastest 400m hurdles time ever recorded by an African athlete.
While he narrowly missed out on a podium finish, Nathaniel’s performance was a significant milestone for Nigerian athletics. He became the first Nigerian to compete in the World Championships final for the men’s 400m hurdles since Henry Amike in 1987, ending a 38-year drought.
The final was not without drama, as an initial disqualification of American athlete Rai Benjamin briefly elevated Nathaniel to the bronze medal position. However, after a successful appeal, Benjamin’s result was reinstated, returning him to the gold medal position and pushing Nathaniel back to fourth.
Despite the reversal, Nathaniel’s record-breaking run solidifies his place among the world’s elite hurdlers and signals a bright future for Nigerian athletics on the global stage.