Ezekiel Nathaniel, representing Nigeria, achieved a commendable fourth place finish in the men’s 400m hurdles final at the 2025 World Athletics Championships held in Tokyo. Clocking a time of 47.11 seconds, Nathaniel narrowly missed the podium, finishing behind the gold medalist Rai Benjamin of the USA, who ran 46.52 seconds, silver medalist Alison dos Santos of Brazil with 46.84 seconds, and bronze medalist Abderrahman Samba of Qatar, who recorded 47.06 seconds. This performance marked a significant milestone for Nigerian athletics, as Nathaniel became the first Nigerian man to reach the 400m hurdles final at the World Championships since Henry Amike’s fourth-place finish in 1987.
The race saw fierce competition, with Norway’s Karsten Warholm finishing fifth at 47.58 seconds, followed by Germany’s Emil Agyekum in sixth with 47.98 seconds, and Caleb Dean of the USA in seventh with 48.20 seconds. Nathaniel’s achievement highlights his emergence as a top contender in the event and underscores Nigeria’s growing presence in global track and field, even as he strives to build on this historic performance for future competitions.
