Nigeria ends its Dakar 2026 swimming campaign without a medal as Kashope Obatoyinbo makes history with a sixth-place final finish

Nigeria ended its swimming campaign at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games without a medal, but recorded a historic milestone after 16-year-old Kashope Obatoyinbo became the first Nigerian athlete to reach a final at the competition.

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Obatoyinbo finished sixth in the men’s 50m freestyle final on Wednesday, clocking 23.43 seconds at the Games. His achievement came after a closely contested swim-off against Christon Joseph of the Bahamas, whom he edged by 0.01 seconds to secure qualification.

The Nigerian recorded 23.55 seconds in the swim-off against Joseph’s 23.56 seconds, earning a place among the finalists.

Czech Republic’s Zdenek Prochazka won the final in 22.54 seconds, while Jaden Mills of Trinidad and Tobago claimed silver in 22.99 seconds. Cyprus’ Andrew Marcus Laghoutis took bronze in 23.04 seconds.

Team Nigeria officials praised Obatoyinbo for his determination and resilience in reaching the final.

Nigeria’s other swimmers also competed across several events, although they did not advance to medal contests.

On Thursday, 15-year-old Aidan Dumuje-Abili finished 11th overall in the boys’ 50m backstroke, recording 27.71 seconds and missing the eight-man final by 0.48 seconds.

Competing from lane two in the fifth and final heat at the Complexe Tour de l’Oeuf Aquatic Centre, Dumuje-Abili finished fourth in his race after recording a reaction time of 0.56 seconds.

Laghoutis secured the final qualification place with 27.23 seconds, leaving the Nigerian 0.22 seconds behind Kenya’s Jeremy Rieck, who finished as the first reserve.

The 50m backstroke was Dumuje-Abili’s best overall ranking in Dakar. He had earlier placed 19th in the 100m butterfly in 59.73 seconds, 15th in the 50m butterfly in 26.05 seconds and fifth in his heat of the 100m backstroke in 1:00.79.

Kristabel Oldeide also competed in the girls’ 50m backstroke, finishing second in her heat in 32.47 seconds. However, her time placed her 30th overall, below the 29.81-second qualifying cut-off for the final.

In the boys’ 50m backstroke final, Greece’s Nikolaos Papatheodorou and Portugal’s Miguel Reis Oliveira shared gold after both recorded 25.69 seconds.

Belgium’s Alexander Van Hoey Billiet finished third, while South Africa’s Eric Kotze, the only African swimmer in the final, placed fourth.

Nigeria’s campaign concluded on Friday, November 6, with Omolola Akinsanmi finishing third in her heat of the girls’ 200m freestyle in 2:18.08. The event was her fourth appearance at the Dakar competition.

Akinsanmi was among the four young swimmers who represented Nigeria at the Games.

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Although the team returned without a swimming medal, Obatoyinbo’s final appearance provided a significant milestone for the country’s participation in the Youth Olympic Games.