PARIS, France – Auburn track & field junior Makanakaishe Charamba advanced to the finals of the men’s 200m dash at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.
Representing Zimbabwe at his first Olympics, Charamba ran a 20.31 during semi-finals to qualify for Thursday’s final at 1:30 p.m. CT. He cruised to a spot in the semi-finals after running a 20.27 and placing second in his heat of round 1.
The track & field program is represented by four current and one former Tiger, who continue to make a strong showing at this year’s Olympics.
Four countries are represented by the program. Of the five athletes competing, four are making their first Olympic appearance.
Freshman Kanyinsola Ajayi and junior Favour Ashe both competing for Nigeria as well as sophomore Azeem Fahmi (Malaysia) raced in the 100m dash.
In the preliminary round of the 100m, Fahmi ran a 10.42, finishing second in his heat to automatically qualify for round one. He concluded his 2024 Olympic appearance with a time of 10.45 in round one.
Ajayi and Ashe started their Olympic debuts in round one of the 100m. Ajayi took the top spot in his heat, crossing the line in 10.02. Ashe’s time of 10.16 was good enough to earn him a spot in the semi-finals. Ajayi and Ashe finished sixth in their respective heats of the semi-final with the former crossing in 10.13 and the latter in 10.08. The sprinting duo from Nigeria did not qualify for a spot in the event final.
Ajayi and Ashe will run a leg of Nigeria’s 4x100m relay team. Round one of the relays will take place Thursday at 4:35 a.m. CT. Ajayi ran the first leg of the men’s 4x100m relay at the 2024 NCAA Outdoor Championships, which earned a national title.
Making his fifth Olympic appearance former Auburn All-American, Donald Thomas, (Bahamas) competed in the qualification round of high jump, but he did not earn a spot in the final.
For full coverage of the Olympics, including streaming links, visit nbcolympics.com.