Lawal Delivers Nigeria’s 6th Gold Medal At Glasgow 2026 Games

Team Nigeria’s golden run at the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games continued in spectacular fashion on Monday as Rafiatu Folashade Lawal claimed the country’s sixth gold medal with a record-breaking performance in the women’s 58kg weightlifting event.

Lawal dominated the competition, setting new Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth records in all three disciplines to underline her superiority in the event.

She lifted 103kg in the snatch before producing 126kg in the clean and jerk, finishing with a combined total of 229kg.

Her impressive total put her 14kg clear of Canada’s Ann-Sophie Taschereau, who settled for silver with 215kg, while Lawal’s performance further strengthened Nigeria’s dominance in weightlifting at the Games.

In line with the reward package announced by the National Sports Commission (NSC), Lawal received an instant $5,000 cash reward for winning gold, with an additional $5,000 performance bonus paid into her account.

Nigeria’s medal hopes also received a boost on the athletics track, with the country’s sprinters securing multiple places in the men’s and women’s 100m semi-finals.

Favour Ashe comfortably won his opening men’s 100m heat in 10.10 seconds with a favourable wind reading of +1.5m/s to book his place in Tuesday’s semi-finals.

Nicholas Fakorede also advanced after finishing second in Heat 10 in 10.21 seconds (+1.4m/s), behind Lesotho’s Mojela Koneshe, who clocked 10.07 seconds to set a new national record.

Fakorede will join Ashe and national record holder Kayinsola Ajayi, who received a bye, in the semi-final line-up.

In the women’s 100m, 17-year-old Commonwealth Games debutant Miracle Ezechukwu announced herself on the big stage by winning her heat from lane eight in 11.32 seconds (-1.5m/s).

Ezechukwu finished ahead of Barbados’ Kishawna Niles and Ghana’s Deborah Acheampong to secure automatic qualification for the semi-finals.

She will be joined by compatriots Blessing Ogundiran and Rosemary Chukwuma, giving Nigeria three representatives in the women’s 100m semi-finals.

There was, however, disappointment for Sade Olatoye in the women’s hammer throw after she finished 10th in Group A and failed to progress.

Olatoye managed a best throw of 62.75m on her second attempt but recorded two fouls from her three attempts.

Despite the setback, Nigeria’s impressive showing continued as the country reached six gold medals, with several medal events still to come in Glasgow.

Team Nigeria will now look to build on Lawal’s record-breaking triumph as the athletes continue their push to meet the country’s medal expectations at the Games.