Nigerian sprint sensation Kanyinsola Ajayi delivered another electrifying performance on Monday night, storming to a 9.92-second win in the men’s 100m at the Meeting International Sotteville-lès-Rouen in France.
Racing from lane five at Stade Jean Adret, the 20-year-old clocked a reaction time of 0.156 seconds and outpaced a competitive field featuring five other sub-10 runners.
His blazing time not only matched his personal best but also shattered the previous meet record of 10.02s set by Trinidad and Tobago’s Keston Bledman in 2015.
Ajayi’s effort, powered by a legal +1.7m/s tailwind, placed him well ahead of his rivals. Cameroonian veteran Emmanuel Eseme finished second with a time of 10.04s, while Senegal’s Mamadou Sarr came in third in 10.10s.
British sprinter Eugene Amo-Dadzie and Australia’s Rohan Browning followed closely, both recording 10.16s, with Amo-Dadzie just edging ahead by a hair’s breadth.
Canada’s Jerome Blake (10.23s), South Africa’s Tsebo Matsoso (10.32s), and France’s Jimmy Vicaut (10.36s) rounded out the final standings.
The performance was Ajayi’s first race since placing fourth at the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Oregon, last month, where he had also clocked 9.92s. Monday’s result not only reaffirms his form but signals his growing status among the elite sprinters on the global stage.
With his latest showing, Ajayi now ranks among the world’s top sprinters in 2025 and has tied Seun Ogunkoya and Udodi Onwuzurike as the fourth-fastest Nigerians ever over the distance.
He trailed only Olusoji Fasuba (9.85s), Divine Oduduru (9.86s), and Godson Oghenebrume (9.90s) on Nigeria’s all-time list.
A standout athlete from Auburn University, Ajayi now owns two of the five fastest legal 100m times ever by a Nigerian, both achieved at age 20.
He joins sprint legends Davidson Ezinwa and Ogunkoya with four career sub-10 clockings—the second-most in Nigerian history.
Ajayi claimed the national 100m title in June 2024 and advanced to the semi-finals of the men’s 100m at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
He also featured in Nigeria’s 4x100m relay team at the Games, gaining valuable experience on the world stage.
Earlier in June, he narrowly missed a medal at the African Championships in Douala, finishing fourth in the 100m but helping Nigeria claim silver in the 4x100m relay as anchor.
Ajayi also enjoyed a stellar indoor season, recording a 6.48s personal best in the 60m at the NCAA Indoor Championships in March, and followed up with a second-place finish at the Virginia Beach meet, running 6.52s in the final.
