Blessing Okagbare

Blessing Okagbare
Okagbare during the 200 m heat at the 2016 Rio Olympics
Personal information
Born (1988-10-09) 9 October 1988 (age 36)
Sapele, Delta State, Nigeria
Years active2007–present
Height1.81 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in)[1]
Weight71 kg (157 lb)[1]
Sport
CountryNigeria
SportAthletics
Event(s)Long jump, sprints
Achievements and titles
Personal bests100 m: 10.79 (2013, NR)
200 m: 22.04 (2018, AR)
Long jump: 7.00 m (2013)
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  Nigeria
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2008 Beijing Long jump
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2013 Moscow Long jump
Bronze medal – third place 2013 Moscow 200 m
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 2014 Glasgow 100 m
Gold medal – first place 2014 Glasgow 200 m
Silver medal – second place 2014 Glasgow 4×100 m relay
Bronze medal – third place 2018 Gold Coast 4×100 m relay
All-Africa Games
Gold medal – first place 2011 Maputo Long jump
Gold medal – first place 2011 Maputo 4×100 m relay
Gold medal – first place 2015 Brazzaville 4×100 m relay
Silver medal – second place 2007 Algiers Long jump
Silver medal – second place 2011 Maputo 100 m
African Championships
Gold medal – first place 2010 Nairobi 100 m
Gold medal – first place 2010 Nairobi Long jump
Gold medal – first place 2010 Nairobi 4×100 m relay
Gold medal – first place 2014 Marrakesh 100 m
Gold medal – first place 2014 Marrakesh 4×100 m relay
Gold medal – first place 2018 Asaba 4×100 m relay
Silver medal – second place 2012 Benin 100 m
World Relays
Gold medal – first place 2015 Nassau 4×200 m relay
Continental Cup
Bronze medal – third place 2010 Split 100 m

Blessing Oghnewresem Okagbare-Otegheri (born 9 October 1988) is a former Nigerian track and field athlete who specialized in long jump and sprints. She is an Olympic and World Championships medallist in the long jump and a world medalist in the 200 metres. Okagbare also holds the women's 100 metres Commonwealth Games record at 10.85 seconds. She is currently serving a 10-year ban for breaching multiple World Athletics anti-doping rules. Her ban expires on 30 July 2032.[2]

Her 100 m best of 10.79 made her the African record holder for the event until it was eclipsed by Murielle Ahouré in 2016. On June 17, 2021, Okagbare ran a wind-aided 10.63 100 m.[3] She was the African record holder over the 200 m with a time of 22.04 seconds in 2018, thus making her the second-fastest African female athlete over the distance behind Christine Mboma, who ran an African record of 21.78 s in 2021. Okagbare was the African 100 m and long jump champion in 2010. She has also won medals at the All-Africa Games, IAAF Continental Cup and World Relays.

Okagbare was suspended after failing a drugs test on 31 July 2021 during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.[4] On 18 February 2022 it was announced that she had been banned from athletics for a period of 10 years commencing 30 July 2021 for multiple breaches of World Athletics Anti-Doping rules.[2] Following a hearing at the Athletics Integrity Unit that found her to have taken both human growth hormone and EPO over an extended period, and to have failed to cooperate with the investigation, Okagbare was banned for ten years, effectively ending her athletics career in disgrace.[5] On 23 June 2022, the AIU announced that Okagbare's ban had been extended by a year for further anti-doping offences.[6]

  1. ^ a b Blessing Okagbare. Sports Reference. Retrieved 2019-09-18.
  2. ^ a b "The Disciplinary Tribunal has banned Nigerian sprinter Blessing Okagbare for 10 years for multiple breaches of the @WorldAthletics Anti-Doping Rules". Twitter.com. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  3. ^ Nigeria's Blessing Okagbare runs second fastest 100m all-time . Boxscore World Sportswire (2021-06-18). Retrieved 2021-06-21.
  4. ^ "BLESSING OKAGBARE OF NIGERIA PROVISIONALLY SUSPENDED AFTER TESTING POSITIVE FOR HUMAN GROWTH HORMONE | Athletics Integrity Unit" (PDF). Athleticsintegrity.org. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
  5. ^ "Disciplinary Tribunal hands Blessing Okagbare a 10-year ban for multiple breaches of the Anti-Doping Rules" (PDF). Athleticsintegrity.org. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  6. ^ "AIU" (PDF).