Nigerian sprinters Favour Ofili and Alaba Akintola are set to compete later tonight, August 24, with hopes of leading their country to the finals of the women's and men's 200-meter events respectively.

Starting at 7:03 p.m. WAT, 20-year-old Ofili will face strong opponents including Ivory Coast’s Marie-Josée Ta Lou, African champion Gina Bass from Gambia, Jamaica’s Shericka Jackson, and USA’s Sha’Carri Richardson in the third Women's 200-meter semi-final.

Following that, at 7:29 p.m. WAT, Akintola will be competing against Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo and USA’s Kenneth Bednarek in the second Men's 200-meter semi-final.

Should they advance, Ofili and Akintola will contend in the women's and men's finals respectively on Friday, August 25.

How Ofili and Akintola Earned Semi-Final Spots at the 2023 World Athletics 

Championship Favour Ofili and Alaba Akintola secured their spots in the semi-finals of the women's and men's 200-meter races on Wednesday, August 23.

Ofili, the holder of the African indoor record, finished fourth with a time of 22.66 seconds in the initial round of six heats, earning herself a non-automatic qualification for the semi-final. In the same heat, Antonique Strachan of the Bahamas clinched first place in 22.31 seconds, followed by Great Britain’s Daryl Neita in 22.39 seconds, and Spain’s Jaël Bestué in 22.58 seconds.

As for Akintola, he originally secured fourth place with a time of 20.54 seconds, granting him an automatic passage to the men's semi-final. He moved up to the third position after France’s Ryan Zeke, who initially finished third, was disqualified due to a false start.