Nigerian hurdler Tobi Amusan has started her 2024 season with a bang, breaking the African women’s indoor record in the 60m hurdles at the Astana World Indoor Tour Meeting in Kazakhstan on Saturday.
Amusan clocked a stunning 7.77 seconds in the final, smashing the previous record of 7.82 seconds set by Gloria Alozie of Nigeria in 1999. She also improved her personal best of 7.84 seconds, which she ran in 2019.
The 26-year-old beat a strong field that included world indoor champion Nia Ali of the USA, who finished second in 7.87 seconds, and European indoor silver medalist Sarah Lavin of Ireland, who was third in 7.96 seconds.
Amusan’s time is the second-fastest in the world this season, behind only world record holder Kendra Harrison of the USA, who ran 7.72 seconds in Karlsruhe, Germany, last week.
Amusan, who won gold medals at the Commonwealth Games, African Games, African Championships and NCAA Championships, is one of the leading contenders for the Olympic title in Paris later this year.
She will also aim to improve on her sixth-place finish at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest last year, where she narrowly missed out on a medal by 0.02 seconds.
Amusan’s record-breaking performance in Astana has earned her praise from fans and fellow athletes on social media, as well as from World Athletics, who tweeted: “Area record! Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan reigns supreme in the women’s 60m hurdles as she clocks a 7.77 area record in Astana #WorldIndoorTour”.