Amusan battles Jamaica’s Fraser-Pryce, others for Athlete of the Year Award

Amusan

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World Record breaker, Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan, has been shortlisted, alongside 10 others, for the 2022 World Athlete of The Year Award.

A statement by the Senior Media Relations Manager at World Athletics, Maggie Durand, seen by The Guardian, yesterday, listed Amusan and others for the December award.

The Nigerian 100 metres hurdler will, however, battle other top athletes, including Jamaica’s speed star, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, America’s Chase Ealey, Kimberly Garcia (Peru), Shericka Jackson (Jamaica), Faith Kipyegon (Kenya) and Shaunae Miller-Uibo (Bahrain).

Amusan made big headlines across the globe in July this year, when she broke the World Record twice on her way to winning the gold medal in the 100 metres hurdles.

A few days after setting a world 100 metres hurdles record of 12.12 seconds at the World Championship in Oregon, United States, Amusan clinched a gold medal at Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games in England before adding the Diamond League gold medal in Zurich.

Amusan, born on April 23, 1997, is the African 100 metres hurdles champion. She had finished fourth at the Tokyo Olympics and was also a fourth-place finisher at the 2019 World Championships held in Doha, Qatar.

The Ogun State-born Amusan, who won gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games as well as the 2017 NCAA champion, could become the first Nigerian to win the World Athletics Athlete of the Year award.

Speaking on her nomination for the award, yesterday, Amusan said that she was honoured to have been considered among the best 10 women in the world for the outgoing year.

“Through the grace of God, I have achieved so many ‘firsts by a Nigerian’ and this is yet