Nigerian sprinter Usheoritse “Dushos” Itsekiri expected to light up Centennial Stadium at the Victoria Track Classic

By: Christopher Kelsall, Athletics Illustrated

The Victoria Track Classic happening Sunday, July 16 will offer exciting international-level action over middle distances, field events and sprints.

The Track Classic has hosted a very long list of Olympians like Melissa Bishop-Nriagu, Diane Cummins, Zach Whitmarsh, and many others. The meet has been a springboard to global competitions for athletes over a range of disciplines. This year will be no different with the men’s sprints when Nigerian Usheoritse Itsekiri, known as “Dushos” toes the line. He is the three-time defending national champion and looks to compete in the 2023 World Athletics Championships and the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. In the process of being selected by Nigeria, he needs to race events like the Track Classic.

Dushos was selected to compete for Nigeria at the 2019 and 2022 World Championships and the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games.

The 25-year-old is very close to competing at the same level as the top sprinters in the world like Canada’s Andre de Grasse who has won several global medals. Dushos owns 100m and 200m personal bests 10.02 and 20.34.

He had an auspicious start to his sprinting career, as he entered the national scene at age 17 back in 2015. He represented Nigeria at the African Youth Championships in Mauritius as well as the Commonwealth Youth Games in Apia, Samoa. By 2017, he won his first Nigerian title at the U20 Championships in Abuja. Dushos clocked a 10.60 performance to win the title, and then took silver in the 200m. He finished the season with a personal best of 10.44.

“The goal is to hit the standard or be top 56 in the world, as well as to get the meeting record,” shared Dushos.

The standards that he needs to run under to qualify for the Budapest Worlds and Paris Olympics are partially weighted on time and his global ranking. Additionally continental champions automatically qualify, like African, European, or North American champions, for example. The qualifying times are 10.00 and 20.16. They are the same for selection into both the Olympics and World Championships.

As an All-African championships bronze and silver medallist and considering his personal bests, he has been all so close.

Deadline to begin the process for the “grasping for the brass ring” is July 30. Currently, in the 100m, Dushos is ranked 44th in the world. He needs to be at least 56th or better if he doesn’t hit the time standards.

With two weeks remaining in his race schedule, Dushos, will be doing everything he can to qualify, like racing with all he has within him. All of his contemporaries will be dropping season-high performances around the globe also.

For Victoria Track fans, he and seven or eight other international-level sprinters will light up the straightaway in front of the main bleachers at the University of Victoria’s Centennial Stadium doing whatever it takes to qualify for the big show.