Tobi Amusan Biography
Tobi Amusan is a Nigerian track and field athlete who competes in the 100-meter dash and sprinting. She was crowned Commonwealth and African Champion in 2018.
She has also won three African Games. She won the Diamond League Trophy in the 100m sprints in Zurich in 2021 at a time of 12.42 seconds.
The sprint hurdler on Saturday set a new African record on Saturday, 18th June, 2022 as she finished in pole position in the 100m hurdles, in 12.41 seconds, at the Diamond League meet in Paris, France breaking her own record set in Zurich last year.
This is the 3rd fastest time in the world in 2022 behind Jasmine Camacho-Quinn, the reigning Olympic champion who ran 12.37 seconds early this month in Rome, Italy, and Alaysha Johnson of the USA who ran 12.40 seconds seven days ago in New York.
Amusan is also expected to receive a $10,000 prize.
Wiki Profile
| Real Name: | Oluwatobiloba Ayomide Amusan |
| Date of Birth | April 23, 1997 |
| Place of Birth: | Ijebu Ode, Ogun State |
| Nationality: | Nigerian |
| Marital Status: | Single |
| Occupation: | Athlete |
| Net Worth | $1.5 million |
Early Life, Childhood and Education
Oluwatobiloba Amusan was born on April 23, 1997, in Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, Nigeria. She is a well-known Nigerian athlete.
She began her early life as an athlete after completing her secondary school education. Amusan displayed tremendous athletic potential from a young age.
She completed her secondary education while in Nigeria at Our Lady of Apostles Secondary School in Ijebu-Ode before relocating to USA for her undergraduate studies at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP).
Her parents, both teachers, set the tone for her upbringing in Ijebu Ode, Nigeria, where she was raised in a strict environment. Amusan recalls that “her existence revolved around school, sleeping, eating, and reading books.” “It’s the same cycle I’ve been on my entire life.”
Her running career began at the age of 15, when she competed in and won an inter-house 100m sprint competition. After defeating a runner at the local athletics stadium that day, Amusan was inspired to take up the sport. Though it was initially a covert operation, he began formal training.
“Her mother was very supportive of her athletic career, whereas her father preferred that she focus on academics,” Amusan explains. “He limited my time at the stadium, but I used to sneak there because my mother will say I was at church!”
Her mother’s lies actually paid off when Amusan qualified to participate for Nigeria in the African Youth Championships in 2013 and won silver in the 200m. She qualified for the 200m semi-finals at the World Athletics U18 Championships in Donetsk, Ukraine, later that year, only to be disqualified due to a lane infringement.
Career
Tobi Amusan showed a lot of athletic potential from a young age. She won a silver medal at the 2013 African Youth Championships in Warri. She also won gold in the 100-meter hurdles at the 2015 African Junior Athletics Championships in Addis Ababa. When she was eighteen years old, she won gold in the 100-meter hurdles at the All-Africa Games.
Amusan is The University of Texas at El Paso’s (UTEP) second female track athlete to be named C-USA Female Track Athlete of the Year since the university joined C-USA in 2016.
She won gold in the 100 meter hurdles as well as the 200 meter dash. She also took silver in the long jump at the C-USA Championships. Amusan broke the 13-second barrier in the hurdles at the El Paso UTEP Invitational with a time of 12.83 seconds.
Kim Turner’s 33-year-old UTEP 100-meter hurdles record was broken. At the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championships, she finished second in the 100 mH. She finished 12.79 seconds behind Kentucky’s Jasmine Camacho-Quinn.
Amusan also competed in the 2016 World Junior Championships in Bydgoszcz. Despite having the second-fastest time ever, she finished fifth in the final. She went on to compete for Nigeria in the Rio Olympic Games, reaching the semifinals of the 100 meter hurdles.
In the absence of Sally Pearson, Danielle Williams, the 2015 World Champion, appeared to be the favorite to win the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia. In the final, however, Amusan surged ahead of her opponents and won by a full metre over Williams.
She also won a bronze medal with her teammates Joy Udo-Gabriel, Blessing Okagbare, and Rosemary Chukwuma in the 4 x 100 m relay. Later that year, at the Asaba African Championships, she won her first African Championships title in her specialist event.
Judy Bell-Gam had won this race for Nigeria at the first African Championships, so this fulfilled a Nigerian tradition. At the championships, she also won gold in the 4 x 100 m relay.
In 2022, she set a new African record in the 100m women’s hurdles with a time of 12.41 seconds in the Diamond League meet in Paris, France beating her own record she set last year in the same competition in Zurich at a time of 12.42 seconds.
This new record time makes Amusan third in the world behind world leader Jasmine Camacho-Quinn (12.37s) and Alaysha Johnson (12.40s).
Tobi Amusan’s Personal Best
Indoor:
- 100 Metres 1.14
- 200 Metres 22.66
- 300 Metres 40.90
- 400 Metres 60.48
- 100 Metres Hurdles 12.41
- 100m Hurdles (76.2cm) 13.92
- Long Jump 6.07
- 4×100 Metres Relay 42.75
- 4×400 Metres Relay 3:41.68
Outdoor:
- 60 Metres 7.41
- 200 Metres 23.35
- 60 Metres Hurdles 7.84
- Long Jump 6.15
Social Media
Instagram: @amusantobi
