Julius Okorie
Nigeria’s women’s 100-meter hurdles sensation and World record holder, Tobi Amusan, has made history in the United States, after becoming the youngest inductee into University of Texas El Paso (UTEP) Hall of Fame.
The honour is coming seven years after she graduated from the University
Join our WhatsApp ChannelShe was honoured alongside fellow athletes Beto Bautista (men’s basketball), Izabela Piekarska (women’s basketball), Tony Tolbert (football), and Brandon Wolfram (men’s basketball) during the school’s 21st induction ceremony on October 15.
The 27 year old expressed her delight at the feat she has achieved on Sunday, saying “I humbly introduce to you the youngest female miner to be inducted into UTEP’s Hall Of Fame Class of 2024. Three semesters as a miner and the rest is…great is God’s faithfulness.”
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Reflecting on her time at UTEP from January 2016 to August 2017, Amusan expressed heartfelt gratitude towards her coaches, teammates, and the staff that supported her journey: “I received a full-ride scholarship that allowed me to focus on maximizing my athletic abilities while studying full-time. It truly took a village; I cherished every moment of being a student-athlete. To my friends and teammates from the class of 2016/2017, I love you all.”
In addition to her recent honour, Tobi Amusan was inducted into the Conference USA Hall of Fame in 2023. Competing for the Miners between 2016 and 2017, she made a notable impact by winning the national title in the 100m hurdles with a time of 12.57 seconds at the 2017 NCAA Outdoor Championships. Throughout her collegiate career, she earned three All-American titles and was a runner-up at the NCAA Championships in 2016.
Amusan’s accomplishments include being a five-time Conference USA champion and holding school records in both the indoor 60m hurdles (7.98 seconds) and the outdoor 100m hurdles (12.57 seconds).
Currently, she holds the world record in the 100m hurdles with an impressive time of 12.1 seconds, achieved during the semifinals of the 2022 World Championships in Oregon, where she also secured the world title, making her Nigeria’s first-ever world champion in athletics.
Her athletic career has seen her represent Nigeria at three Olympic Games, and she has claimed titles as a four-time African Games champion, five-time African champion, three-time Diamond League winner (in 2021, 2022, and 2023), and a two-time Commonwealth Games champion (in 2018 and 2022).
The recent honour could be described as a good icing to the positives of outgoing 2024 to overshadow the disappointment of this year’s Olympics in France where Amusan contrary to permutations and expectations failed to click even as Team Nigeria failed to earn a medal.
Julius Okorie is Chief Sports and Entertainment Correspondent for Prime Business Africa. He began his journalism career with the Champion Newspaper and Sporting Champion and later moved on to Daily Independent and the Nation Newspapers. Okorie joined Prime Business Africa in 2024 bringing on board 20 years of experience in writing investigative news on Sports and Entertainment. His well researched and highly informative articles on Sports Business and general entertainment are followed by a wide range of audience.
