Commonwealth Games contenders shine as Cameroon, Nigeria, Ghana, Zambia and Zimbabwe impress in Budapest

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By Maxwell Kumoye 

 


With the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow fast approaching, athletes from Cameroon, Nigeria, Ghana, Zambia and Zimbabwe delivered encouraging performances at the Gyulai István Memorial, Hungarian Athletics Grand Prix in Budapest, underlining their medal ambitions for Scotland.


Cameroon's reigning African 100m champion, Emmanuel Eseme, stole the spotlight by becoming the only sprinter to break the 10-second barrier, storming to victory in 9.99 seconds. 


The performance marked the third time this season that Eseme has dipped below the coveted mark, reinforcing his status as one of Africa's leading sprint hopes heading into Glasgow.


Ghana's Abdul-Rasheed Saminu also produced an impressive display, finishing second in 10.01 seconds after pushing Eseme all the way in a high-quality race. 


Jamaica's Ackeem Blake placed third in 10.04 seconds, while South Africa's Akani Simbine shared fourth in 10.05 seconds.


Speaking after the race, Eseme expressed confidence that even faster times lie ahead after already setting a Cameroonian record and personal best of 9.94 seconds earlier this season.


In the men's 200m, Zimbabwe's Makanakaishe Charamba continued his fine form with a second-place finish in 20.09 seconds behind Morocco's Yassine Hssine, who set a national record of 19.92 seconds. 


Nigeria's Udodi Onwuzurike completed the podium in third, equalling his season's best with 20.18 seconds to strengthen his preparations for the Commonwealth Games.


Zambia's Muzala Samukonga delivered one of the standout performances of the meeting by winning the men's 400m in a season's best 44.02 seconds. 


The African quarter-mile star finished comfortably ahead of Hungary's Attila Molnár (44.51s) and South Africa's Zakithi Nene (44.57s), sending a strong message ahead of Glasgow.


Nigeria also celebrated another podium finish in the field events as Chukwuebuka Enekwechi placed third in the men's shot put with a best throw of 21.48 metres. 


Italy's Leonardo Fabbri won the competition with 22.04m, while Jamaica's Rajindra Campbell secured second with 21.52m.


The Budapest meeting, the final World Athletics Continental Tour Gold event before September's inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championships, provided a valuable opportunity for Commonwealth Games-bound athletes to test themselves against elite international competition.


For Cameroon, Nigeria, Ghana, Zambia and Zimbabwe, the performances in Hungary offer further encouragement as they fine-tune preparations and build momentum in pursuit of medals at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland.

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