Kanyinsola Ajayi: Shattered Dreams in Glasgow

When Olusoji Fasuba won a silver medal in the 100m at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia, with a time of 10.11 seconds behind Jamaica’s Asafa Powell, not many Nigerians would have believed the country would wait for another 20 years before another Nigerian male sprinter would climb the podium for a Commonwealth Games medal. But with Kanyinsola Ajayi having lowered his season’s best to 9.84 seconds ahead of the final in Glasgow, following consecutive Diamond League wins over reigning world champion, Oblique Seville, many would have bet on Fasuba’s silver being upgraded in Glasgow. A disappointing 9.90 seconds return in the final by the 21-year-old could only earn the country a bronze

Nigeria’s hope of winning a sprint medal at the 2026 Commonwealth Games rested solely on Kanyinsola Ajayi, after emerging as the country’s only finalist from a team of six athletes that competed in the men’s and women’s 100m semi-finals on Tuesday in Glasgow. The Nigerian record holder however could only settle for a bronze medal in the men’s 100m final at the Commonwealth Games clocking 9.90 seconds to finish third, after entering the race as overwhelming favourite.

Cameroon’s Emmanuel Eseme took gold in a Games record 9.83 seconds, while Australia’s Lachlan Kennedy claimed silver in 9.85 seconds.

Ajayi’s time however took him to the podium of the Commonwealth Games 20 years after Olusoji Fasuba last won a silver medal at the 2006 edition in Melbourne, Australia.

Just five years ago, Kanyinsola Ajayi was playing football in Ikorodu, Lagos, Nigeria, dreaming of a future in sport. Today, the 21-year-old track sensation is one of the fastest men in the world over 100m.

In a meteoric rise, Ajayi has established himself as one of the most exciting young names in global sprinting. The 21-year-old is the reigning NCAA 60m and 100m champion, broke the Nigerian 100m record, and backed up his collegiate success with consecutive Diamond League victories at the 2026 Prefontaine Classic and followed in London, defeating reigning world champion Oblique Seville on both occasions.

“I’m not scared of anybody,” Ajayi told Olympics.com following his Prefontaine Classic victory, just weeks after winning the NCAA outdoor 100m title at the same Hayward Field track.

Ajayi grew up in Ikorodu, Nigeria, where football, not athletics, was his first passion. Playing as a defender, sprinting wasn’t initially part of the plan.

“I only got into sprinting in 2022,” he told Olympics.com. “Since then, I’ve just been finding my way to where I am today.”

Much of that journey, he says, has been driven by self-belief and perseverance.

“You just have to do what you have to do. Find your own way. No matter if there’s support or no support, you just have to find your own way.”

Along the way, Ajayi credits his family, his faith and his coach for helping him realise his potential.

“By trusting myself, my family, the support I got from my family and my coach, and God helped me as well.”

His rapid rise soon caught the attention of Auburn University’s sprints and hurdles coach, two-time Olympian Ken Harnden, who recruited the Nigerian to one of the NCAA’s premier sprint programmes.

Ajayi is part of a new generation driving Nigeria’s track resurgence. Alongside athletes such as Samuel Ogazi, Ezekiel Nathaniel and Tobi Amusan, he is helping elevate Nigerian athletics on the world stage.

“We’re just trying to put Africa on the map and be like, ‘yeah, we’re still here. Africa, yeah. Nigeria, still here,’” Ajayi said. “Just trying to do our best and fly the Nigerian flag.”

Despite his rapid rise, he remains grounded. He speaks with his family every day and says they are immensely proud of what he has accomplished.

Looking ahead, Ajayi insists his approach will not change.

“Go back to training, just practice, practice, then whatever next is next,” he said.

Nor does he expect the pressure to be any different as he continues his rise through the sport.

“It feels the same,” he said. “If I can take the pressure in the NCAA, I can take the pressure wherever the competition is.”

Born on 14 September 2004, in Ikorodu. His athletic spark became clear early on when he dominated the 2021 Maltina School Games, sweeping victories in the sprint events. Shortly after, he posted a 10.26-second finish at the AFN All-Comers meet at Yabatech Sports Centre.

His performance earned him a spot representing Nigeria at the 2022 World Athletics U20 Championships in Cali, Colombia. By 2023, he solidified his reputation as a major junior talent, taking gold in both the 100 metres and the 4×100-metre relay at the African U20 Athletics Championships in Ndola, Zambia.

In 2024, Ajayi moved to the United States to join Auburn University’s track and field programme. The transition yielded quick success: National Champion and Olympian (2024): He won his first Nigerian National 100m title at the Olympic Trials in June 2024 and went on to reach the 100m semi-finals at the Paris Olympics.

At the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, he ran 9.88 seconds in the heats to reach the 100m final. He became the first Nigerian male sprinter to reach a World Championship 100m final since Fasuba in 2007. Ajayi tied the collegiate 60-metre record by running 6.45 seconds to win both the SEC Indoor Championship and the 2026 NCAA Indoor title.

At the NCAA East Regional in Lexington, Kentucky, Ajayi ran 9.84 seconds to eclipsed Fasuba’s 9.85-second national record that had stood since 2006.

He claimed the 2026 NCAA 100m title with a wind-assisted 9.72 seconds (+2.2 m/s), becoming the second Nigerian to win the event after Divine Oduduru in 2018.

On his Diamond League debut at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon, Ajayi defeated world champion, Oblique Seville and Christian Coleman, winning in 9.84 seconds. He followed that up weeks later by winning the London Diamond League 100m in 9.84 seconds.