Ezekiel Nathaniel Breaks 38 Year Jinx, Storms into 400m Hurdles Final
Written by Alonge Akinlolu on 17 — 09
A jinx was broken on the tracks of Tokyo as Nigeria’s Ezekiel Nathaniel 🇳🇬 blazed his way into the men’s 400m hurdles final at the 2025 World Championships, clocking an impressive 47.47s to win his semifinal.
Nathaniel’s brilliant run saw him finish ahead of Ismail Abakar of Qatar, who set a personal best of 47.61s, while Caleb Dean of the USA settled for third with 47.85s.
This milestone makes Nathaniel the first Nigerian man to qualify for a 400m hurdles final at the World Championships since Henry Amike in 1987, a drought that lasted nearly four decades.
