*Former Nigerian athlete, Salwa Eid Naser wins third 400m title for Bahrain 

Duro Ikhazuagbe 

Nigeria’s Nathaniel Ezekiel won a precious bronze medal in the final of the 400m hurdles event of the 2025 Wanda Diamond League final in Zurich on Thursday evening.

The American NCAA champion gave his best but was unable to repeat as he did winning in the Lausanne leg of the Diamond League in the series final yesterday. Ezekiel clocked 47.56secs for the third place finish.

Norwegian Karsten Warholm took the title in 46.70 to set a new meet record while Qatar’s 2019 Worlds bronze medalist, Abderrahmane Samba (47.56) was second.

For his effort, Ezekiel received $10,000 in prize money, $3,000 more than he would have been given if his 400m hurdles event was not classified as a Diamond + discipline in Zurich. He has now earned $20,000 for his first season in the Diamond League. He got $4,000 for his third position in Eugene and $6,000 for placing second in Silesia. There was no payment for first position in Lausanne because the 400m hurdles was not Diamond League event at that Meet.

On a day that Nigeria’s biggest hope for top finish in the women’s 100m hurdles, Tobi Amusan skipped the final, a former Nigerian quarter miler now competing for Bahrain, Salwa Eid Naser (formerly Ebelechukwu Agbapuonwu) won her third Diamond League trophy in the women’s 400m for her adopted country.

She powered to the finish line in a new meet record of 48.70secs. She left the Paris 2024 champion Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic (49.23) in the second place while Norway’s Henriette Jaeger was third in 49.49.

In the women’s 100m hurdles where Amusan holds the world record of 12.12secs, Jamaica’s Ackera Nugent hit the finish line in 12.30secs. She missed equaling the Meet record of 12.29 set by Amusan in 2022 by the whiskers.

Switzerland’s Ditaji Kambundji was second in a Swiss National Record (NR) time of 12.40secs while Grace Stark of the USA clocked a time of 12.44 to finish third ahead of Jamaica’s Danielle Williams who had to settle for fourth place with the same time as Stark.

The women’s 100m title for 2025 went to Olympic Champion, Julien Alfred, who secured the top honour in a time of 10.76secs at the Zurich Diamond League final. Jamaica’s Tia Clayton ran another sub 11s with a time of 10.84secs to finish second while  Great Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith was third, clocking 10.94.

Côte d’Ivoire’s Marie Josée Ta Lou-Smith, was disqualified for a false start.

In the Men’s version of the longer sprint, American Noah Lyles took his revenge against Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo of Botswana in the 200m.

The 28-year-old American raced down the curve into the home straight in 19.74secs to leave Tebogo second in 19.76. Alexander Ogando of Dominican Republic was third in 20.14secs. 

Nigerian Udodi Onwuzurike who placed eighth in the 200m received $1,000 consolation cheque.

American Christian Coleman got his usual hot start and  kept the lead right to the finish line in 9.97 (wind: -0.4 m/s) to take his fourth 100m title at the Diamond League in Zurich. South African Akani Simbine had to settle for second in 9.98, then Jamaica’s Ackeem Blakein 9.99 was third.

The post Nathaniel Ezekiel Wins Bronze, $10,000 in Diamond League Final appeared first on THISDAYLIVE.