ATHLETICS – Bahrain's elite sprinter Edidiong Odiong clocked a season’s best while securing a strong runner-up finish in the women’s 100 metres at the Challenger Game Oulu track and field meet in Oulu, Finland.
The event was part of this year’s World Athletics Continental Tour, and it featured top-class competitors from around the world.
Odiong nearly powered to a victory but was pipped by the narrowest of margins by Symone Darius of Liberia in the 100m final.
Both runners had marks of 11.35 seconds on the race’s official classification, with Darius being awarded the win. Jasmine Wilkins from Britain took third in 11.62s.
Completing the rankings from fourth through eighth, respectively, were Nooralotta Neziri in 11.64s, Taru Vaisanen in 11.80s, Jandeh Jallow in 11.93s, Veera Paasovaara in 11.93s, and Milla Kangas in 12.00s – all of whom are Finnish athletes.
Earlier in the meeting, Odiong had booked her spot in the final after winning the third of three heats in the 100m first round.
She clocked a mark of 11.56s in her run, where she beat Miranda Lauvstad of Norway, who finished in 12.01s.
Wilkins won heat one in 11.77s, while Darius triumphed in heat two in 11.51s, setting up their showdown with Odiong.
The 29-year-old’s participation in Oulu followed her sensational start to her outdoor campaign for 2026, which she kicked off with a gold medal as part of Bahrain’s women’s 4x100m relay team at the fourth GCC Games in Doha, Qatar last May.
Odiong is a former under-20 world champion in the women’s 200m and was an Asian Games champion in the 200m and 100m, while also being an ex-Arab champion in the 100m.
She is also the current Bahrain record holder in both sprint distances with her marks of 22.43s in the 200m and 11.05s at 100m – both of which she clocked in 2022.
Aside from competing on athletics’ international circuit this year, Odiong is expected to be amongst the top medal hopefuls of Bahrain’s athletics national team at the 20th Asian Games in Aichi and Nagoya, Japan, scheduled for this September 19 to October 4.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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