Tokyo Olympics: 17-Year-Old Habitat Ogunbanwo Sets New Swimming National Record
Habitat Ogunbanwo has set an impressive record at her Olympics debut in the #Tokyo2020 Olympic Games.
First in her heats, Habitat Ogunbanwo completed the 100m freestyle swimming event at the Tokyo Olympics in a record-setting 59.74 seconds making it her best and also setting a new National record. She now outpaces Ngozi Monu‘s long-standing 1:00.50s mark. Additionally, this new record makes her the first Nigerian woman to go under the 1-minute mark.
Though she will not compete in the Semifinal of the Women’s Swimming 100m Freestyle event as her time was not among the top 16, she has made huge strides, making her Olympic debut and setting a new swimming national record at 17!
The Russia-based swimmer previously represented Nigeria in two events at the 2018 FINA World Swimming Championships held in Hangzhou, China, and at the 2019 World Aquatics Championships held in Gwangju, South Korea.
Habibat is inspired by two black athletes in the sport: African American gold medalist Simone Manuel and Jamaican Olympian Alia Atkinson. Manuel is the African American woman to win an individual Olympic medal in swimming, tying for gold in the 100-meter freestyle at the 2016 Rio Olympics while Atkinson is the first black woman to win a world swimming title at the Short Course World Championships in Doha in 2014.
Congratulations Habitat Ogunbanwo. We are so proud.