Abdul-Rasheed Saminu smashes Ghana 100m national record in Georgia
Ghanaian sprinter Abdul-Rasheed Saminu has broken the national 100m record once again, clocking a time of 9.84 seconds at the 2025 Last Chance Qualifier meet in Georgia, United States, on Saturday, 19 July 2025.
The race, held at McEachern High School was another major milestone in a remarkable season for the 27-year-old, who continues to redefine Ghanaian sprinting history.
Saminu had already made headlines in May when he ran 9.86 seconds at the NCAA East Preliminary Round, eclipsing Benjamin Azamati’s long-standing national record of 9.90 seconds set in 2022.
That time had confirmed his status as Ghana’s fastest man ever. On Saturday, he went two hundredths of a second faster in the heats to further improve the national mark and position him among the world’s elite in 2025.
His latest performance now ranks him joint third in the world this year, behind only Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson (9.75s) and Oblique Seville (9.83s), and puts him on course for a serious challenge at the World Championships in Tokyo later this season.
Already a semi-finalist at the last 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, Saminu has shown steady progression throughout the year while competing for the University of South Florida.
Earlier in the season, he had also posted a wind-assisted 9.87s, but his sub-9.90 legal clockings now confirm his potential on the biggest stages.
After Saturday’s achievement, Saminu posted a brief message on X (formerly Twitter), simply writing, “9.84 let the track do the talking,” a reflection of the quiet confidence that has come to define his performances on the track.
9.84 let the track do the talking
— Saminu Abdul Rasheed (@rasheed_saminu) July 20, 2025
In the same heats, fellow Ghanaian Mustapha Bokpin also impressed with a strong 10.09 seconds to finish second.
Nigeria’s Alaba Akintola ran a season’s best 10.11 seconds with a legal wind of +1.5m/s, placing third behind Abdul Rasheed. Akintola returned to win the men’s 200m in 20.28 seconds, capping a solid day of sprinting for West African athletes.
The final of the 100m, however, produced a different outcome. With Saminu not starting, it was Bokpin who seized the moment, winning a closely contested race in 10.17 seconds (+0.5m/s).
South Africa’s Shaun Maswanganyi finished second, also in 10.17 seconds, but was narrowly edged out on the clock by seven-thousandths of a second.
Akintola followed closely in 10.18 seconds, with Taylor Banks recording the same official time for fourth place.
The top four finishers were separated by a mere 0.02 seconds, highlighting the competitiveness of the field. Further down the order, Eloy Benitez ran 10.22 seconds for fifth, followed by Marvin Jean-Francois in 10.37, Mikkel Bassue in 10.43, Michael Gizzi in 10.49, and Tobiloba Oniyide in 10.50, all within a tightly packed field.
Men’s 100m Final – Top 10 Results
| Place | Athlete | Team | Time | Wind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mustapha Bokpin (GHA) | Unattached | 10.17 | +0.5 |
| 2 | Shaun Maswanganyi (RSA) | Unattached | 10.17 | +0.5 |
| 3 | Alaba Akintola (NGR) | Unattached | 10.18 | +0.5 |
| 4 | Taylor Banks (USA) | Unattached | 10.18 | +0.5 |
| 5 | Eloy Benitez (USA) | Unattached | 10.22 | +0.5 |
| 6 | Marvin Jean-Francois | Oxy Athletics | 10.37 | +0.5 |
| 7 | Mikkel Bassue | The Winners Circle | 10.43 | +0.6 |
| 8 | Michael Gizzi | Unattached | 10.49 | +0.6 |
| 9 | Tobiloba Oniyide | Oxy Athletics | 10.50 | +0.6 |
