ATHLETICS: Rosemary Chukwuma named BIG 12 Female Athlete Of The Week

January 18, 2023 Sports 3 Views

Rosemary Chukwuma rewarded as the best female athlete performer in the BIG 12 Conference

Chukwuma ran a Personal Best (PB), School Record, and World-leading time of 7.11s, to win her 60m semis race and almost equalled the time clocking 7.13s for victory in the final at the Texas Tech Corky Classic.

Being the fastest time in the world this year, it equates to the fastest in the NCAA and Nigeria. The time also propels her to joint-eighth on the all-time Nigeria list, behind Blessing Okagbare with 7.09s.

Rosemary Chukwuma ran a PB and broke her own SR in her first race of 2023

Last season, she had a 60m PB of 7.21s and ran legal 10.99s in the 100m. She also won the BIG 12 indoor and outdoor titles in the 60m and 100m, as well as being an NCAA outdoor finalist. In addition, she ran a wind-aided 10.8s twice -b the fastest by a female Nigerian athlete in all wind conditions.

Chukwuma beginning her season with a PB form are great signs of what she’s capable of running this year indoors and outdoors, as she can only get faster as the season progresses.

Chukwuma is a top contender for a medal at the NCAA Indoor Championships

For context, the bronze medallist at the 2022 NCAA Indoor Championships clocked an identical time of 7.11s.

So if the Nigerian speedster can keep up with this form and better it when it matters most, she may be smiling on the podium for the first time in her college career at the NCAA Indoor Championships.