Nationality Portuguese Height 1.95 m Name Francis Obikwelu | Sport Running Weight 80 kg | |
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Full name Francis Obiorah Obikwelu Olympic medals Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Men's 100 metres | ||
2004 gaz de francis 100m final francis obikwelu maurice greene 10 06 10 14 paris france
Francis Obiorah Obikwelu, (born 22 November 1978) is a Nigerian-born Portuguese sprinter specializing in 100 metres and 200 metres. He obtained Portuguese citizenship in 2001. He is the 2004 Olympic silver medalist in the 100 metres. From that race, he also set the European record in the event at 9.86, which has been tied twice by Jimmy Vicaut, but not beaten.
Contents
- 2004 gaz de francis 100m final francis obikwelu maurice greene 10 06 10 14 paris france
- European indoors paris bercy 60m finals francis obikwelu
- Biography
- From association football to athletics
- From Nigeria to Portugal
- Athens 2004
- Statistics
- Personal bests
- Olympic Games
- World Championships
- World Indoor Championships
- European Championships
- Golden League
- Grand Prix
- Grand Prix Final
- Super Grand Prix
- Orders
- References
European indoors paris bercy 60m finals francis obikwelu
Biography
Born in Onitsha, Obikwelu holds the record for the fastest time in the 100 m set by a European competitor with a time of 9.86 seconds. He finished second in the 100 m at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, the first medal ever in athletics sprinting events for Portugal. He won 100 m and 200 m in 2006 at the European Championships in Athletics and became the first athlete to win both 100 m and 200 m in the same European Championship since 1978. Kim Gevaert also succeeded in this double victory at the same Championship.
Obikwelu was voted Waterford Crystal European Male Athlete of the Year for 2006 by the European Athletic Association, in an internet poll open to member federations, media and the general public.
Obikwelu announced his retirement from competitive athletics after failing to qualify for the 100 m finals in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but retracted his statement, agreeing to honour the last year of his contract with his track club. Obikwelu won the 100 m gold medal at the 2009 Lusophony Games.
From association football to athletics
At the age of 14, one of Obikwelu's football coaches in Nigeria noticed him and suggested he try out athletics. After two years he was representing Nigeria in the 1994 African Junior Championships and won the silver medal in the 400 metres.
From Nigeria to Portugal
He based himself in Lisbon, Portugal, as a 16-year-old, after competing at the 1994 World Junior Championships. After being rejected by both Sport Lisboa e Benfica and Sporting Clube de Portugal, he worked for a while as a construction worker in the Algarve. He decided to learn Portuguese, and his teacher put him in contact with Belenenses, where he restarted practising. While living in Portugal, Francis was adopted by a lady who he now proudly refers to as his "mother".
He then made a decision to run for Portugal. The news was broken in July 2000 by Nigerian sprinter Mercy Nku, who like Obikwelu is based in Lisbon. She said Obikwelu took the decision because of neglect by Nigerian sports officials when he was injured while representing Nigeria in Sydney, Australia. "He had to go to Canada to undergo an operation on his knee spending his own money." He became a Portuguese citizen in October 2001.
Both his athletics achievements, his life story and his personality made him a popular figure in his adoptive country, where he is nicknamed Chico, the short form of the Portuguese version of his first name.
He currently competes for Sporting Clube de Portugal.
Athens 2004
In the qualifiers he was one of the most impressive runners, managing two times under ten seconds (beating the Portuguese record). In the final he recovered from a non-medal position in the second half of the race to reach Silver, just one hundredth of a second behind Justin Gatlin and one hundredth ahead of Maurice Greene, managing to beat the European record set by Linford Christie in 1993. He finished fifth in the 200m.
Statistics
As of September 9, 2008Personal bests
Olympic Games
2nd 100 m, 2004 Athens, GRE 9.865th 200 m, 2004 Athens, GRE 20.14World Championships
2nd 4 x 100 m Relay 1997 Athens, GRE 38.073rd 200 m 1999 Seville, ESP 20.11World Indoor Championships
3rd 200 m 1997 Paris, FRA 21.101st 60 m 2011 Paris, FRA 6.53European Championships
1st 100 m 2002 Munich, GER2nd 200 m 2002 Munich, GER1st 100 m 2006 Goteborg, SWE 9.991st 200 m 2006 Goteborg, SWE 20.01Golden League
1st 100 m 2004 Saint-Denis, FRA 10.061st 200 m 2004 Saint-Denis, FRA 20.121st 100 m 2001 Berlin, GER 9.982nd 100 m 2002 Brussels, BEL 10.013rd 200 m 2004 Zurich, SUI 20.363rd 200 m 2004 Bergen, NOR 20.461st 100 m 2008 Madrid. ESP 10.04Grand Prix
1st 100 m 2002 Lausanne, SUI 10.093rd 200 m 2001 Athens, GRE 20.593rd 200 m 2001 Nice, FRA 20.41Grand Prix Final
3rd 200 m 2001 Melbourne, AUS 20.525th 100 m 2002 Saint-Denis, FRA 10.03Super Grand Prix
1st 200 m 2004 Madrid, ESP 20.292nd 100 m 2004 Lausanne, SUI 10.022nd 200 m 2003 Madrid, ESP 20.59Additionally, Obikwelu was the 1996 world junior champion over 100 m and 200 m.