OKAGBARE ON FIRE IN ARKANSAS…RUNS TWO PERSONAL BESTS IN 60M, 200M

Nigeria’s undisputed queen of the track, Blessing Okagbare stormed to an impressive 7.10 seconds to win the 60m event at the American track league three held Sunday in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Okagbare ran 7.17 in the heat to equal her personal best before blazing to a new lifetime best to win the race ahead of Jamaica’s Christiana Williams (7.14) in a repeat of the first leg of the meeting last month at the same arena. The time catapults her to number seven in the Nigerian all-time list. Not done with her impressive run in the 60m,the long-legged, beautiful 2014 Commonwealth Games double sprint queen took to the 200m track to scotch to another lifetime best, a 23.01 seconds finish to win her heat. The time is the second fastest time ever ran by a Nigerian woman over the distance behind Reginna George whose 23.00 seconds performance on the same track in Fayetteville in 2013 remains the Nigerian record in the event. In the men’s 60m,the Nigerian duo of Divine Oduduru and Charles Okezie failed to sprint beyond their respective heats. Oduduru ran 6.70 seconds to finish fifth in the first heat while Okezie was sixth (6.83) in the second heat. USA’s Ronnie Baker ran 6.53 seconds to win the final ahead of compatriot and world leader Trayvon Bromell (6.58)