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Francis Obikwelu
Francis Obiorah Obikwelu, GOIH (born 22 November 1978) is a retired Nigerian-born Portuguese sprinter, who specialized in 100 metres and 200 metres. He was the 2004 Olympic silver medalist in the 100 metres. In the same race, he set the European record in the event at 9.86 seconds, which stood for nearly 17 years. At club level, he was a professional athlete for Sporting CP.[1] BiographyObikwelu was born in Onitsha, Nigeria. At the age of 14, one of Obikwelu's football coaches noticed him and suggested he try out athletics. After two years, he represented Nigeria in the 1994 African Junior Championships and won the silver medal in the 400 metres.[2] Obikwelu moved to Lisbon, Portugal as a 16-year-old. After being rejected by both Sport Lisboa e Benfica and Sporting Clube de Portugal, he worked as a construction worker in the Algarve. He decided to learn Portuguese, and his teacher put him in contact with sports club Belenenses, where he resumed practising in 1995 before signing for Sporting Clube de Portugal in 1996.[3] While living in Portugal, Obikwelu was adopted by a lady who he now refers to as his "mother".[4] In July 2000, Lisbon-based Nigerian sprinter Mercy Nku said Obikwelu had decided to compete for Portugal because of neglect by Nigerian sports officials when he was injured while representing Nigeria in Sydney, Australia. "He had to go to Canada to undergo an operation on his knee spending his own money." Obikwelu became a Portuguese citizen in October 2001.[4] Obikwelu's athletics achievements, his life story and his personality made him a popular figure in Portugal, where he is nicknamed Chico, the short form of the Portuguese version of his first name.[4] In 2019, Obikwelu was reported to have worked as a speed trainer, on a temporary basis, for fellow Portuguese athlete, footballer Cristiano Ronaldo. [5] Athletics careerObikwelu finished second in the 100 m at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, the first medal ever in athletics sprinting events for Portugal. In the qualifiers at the 2004 Summer Olympics he ran two times under ten seconds, setting a national record. In the final he recovered from a non-medal position in the second half of the race to win silver, just one-hundredth of a second behind Justin Gatlin and one-hundredth ahead of Maurice Greene, beating the former European record set by Linford Christie in 1993.[6] Obikwelu finished fifth in the 200m. He won 100 m and 200 m in 2006 at the European Championships in Athletics and became the first male athlete to win both 100 m and 200 m in the European Championship. Obikwelu was voted Waterford Crystal European Male Athlete of the Year for 2006 by the European Athletic Association, in an internet poll open to member federations, media and the general public.[7] Obikwelu announced his retirement from competitive athletics after failing to qualify for the 100 m finals in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but retracted his statement, agreeing to honour the last year of his contract with his track club.[8] Obikwelu won the 100 m gold medal at the 2009 Lusophony Games.[9] Statistics
Personal bestsAs of August 2024, the highlighted time for 200 metres is a track record.
Awards and honoursOlympic Games
World Championships
World Indoor Championships
European Indoor Championships
European Championships
Golden League
Grand Prix
Grand Prix Final
Super Grand Prix
Obikwelu was the 1996 world junior champion over 100 m and 200 m. Orders
Track recordsAs of September 2024, Obikwelu holds the following track records for 100 metres and 200 metres.
100 metres
200 metres
References
External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Francis Obikwelu.
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