Team Nigeria Spots Up for Grabs as AFN Releases Commonwealth Games Trials Schedule

Nigeria’s finest track and field athletes will converge on the Yabatech Sports Complex in Lagos from June 21 to 23 as the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) stages its 2026 Commonwealth Games Trials.

The three-day event will serve as the final selection platform for athletes seeking to secure places on Team Nigeria ahead of the 2026 Commonwealth Games, with a full programme of track and field events scheduled.

Action begins on Sunday with early finals in the women’s 5,000m and men’s discus, while the race for sprint supremacy gets underway with the opening heats of the men’s and women’s 100m.

Athletes will also compete in the men’s high jump and the preliminary rounds of the men’s and women’s 400m.

The first day continues with several medal events, including the women’s long jump and shot put, alongside the men’s and women’s 800m finals.

The men’s triple jump and men’s 5,000m final will also be contested before the day’s programme concludes.

Monday’s events will place a spotlight on endurance and technical disciplines. Race walkers will battle for honours in the men’s and women’s 10,000m events, while field event competitors will contest finals in the women’s javelin, women’s triple jump and both hammer throw events.

The second day will also feature crucial qualification races, including the heats of the men’s and women’s 400m hurdles and the semi-finals of the 100m and 400m. The headline attraction, however, will be the men’s and women’s 100m finals, where Nigeria’s fastest athletes will compete for national bragging rights and Commonwealth Games selection.

The final day of competition is expected to provide a dramatic conclusion to the trials. Athletes will begin with heats in the men’s 110m hurdles, women’s 100m hurdles and the men’s and women’s 200m before a packed afternoon session.

Among the events scheduled to decide places on Team Nigeria are the finals of the men’s and women’s 400m hurdles, men’s javelin, women’s high jump, women’s discus, and the men’s and women’s 1,500m and 400m races.

The curtain will come down on the championships with the sprint hurdles and 200m finals, bringing an end to three days of competition that will shape Nigeria’s athletics squad for the Commonwealth Games.

With established internationals expected to line up alongside emerging talents, the trials promise a high-quality showcase of Nigerian athletics and an opportunity for athletes to book their place on one of the country’s biggest international teams.