Amusan’s Mother Reveals How She Won Over Father For Athlete’s Career

The mother of Nigeria’s Queen of the track, Tobi Amusan, has shed light on the family’s reaction to her decision to take up athletics as a career.

Mrs Amusan revealed how Tobi came out of a family of sport lovers, but her father had reservations about sanctioning her decision to be an athlete because he saw sports as a distraction.

Mr Amusan believed sports could distract her from following her dream, which was to study medicine, but eventually he gave her his support.

Tobi’s father played football during his school days, while her mother participated in sprint, and played handball and hockey, so sports was running in the family.

Mrs Amusan said due to her background in sports it wasn’t a difficult decision for her to support Tobi in her chosen career.

She said: “It wasn’t a difficult decision for me because I had been an athlete myself. During my school days, I was actively involved in sports—I sprinted and played handball and hockey. Her father, too, was a footballer. So, from the beginning, sports were already in her blood.

“Tobi started showing interest in sports from a very young age. Even in nursery school at Kiddies Home Montessori, she participated in school games. When she moved to Our Lady of Apostles Secondary School, she played football and ran for the school in inter-house competitions. We always encouraged her.

“However, her father had reservations. He wanted her to focus on academics, as she dreamed of studying medicine. He believed sports could be a distraction, and like many Nigerian parents, he wanted her to take a more traditional professional path. But I knew she had the talent, and I supported her fully.”

Mrs Amusan admitted that it was hard to convince her father to support her career decision but eventually he succumbed due to Tobi’s unrelenting desire.

She said: “I had to be strategic about it. There were times I had to tell small lies just to allow her to attend training. Sometimes, I would tell her father that she was going for extra lessons when, in reality, she was in training. I knew that if she were around, she would be forced to stay home or focus only on academics.

“But as time went on, the truth came out. Her coach approached my husband and assured him that Tobi had great potential. He explained how talented she was and how far she could go if given the right support. That conversation played a major role in changing his perspective.

“Eventually, he began to see what we saw. He noticed that her passion and determination were unmatched. That was when he finally gave his full consent for her to pursue athletics.

In 2023, Tobi Amusan was accused of whereabouts violation, which led to her provisional suspension by the Athletics Integrity Unit before she was eventually cleared a month later.

Mrs Amusan said it was a very difficult moment for Tobi, and the family.

She said: “It was very tough. I didn’t sleep for three days. The calls from people were overwhelming—some were comforting, while others only made things worse.

“Tobi was deeply affected. She lost weight, she was mentally exhausted, and she kept questioning why this was happening to her.

“Even when she had a competition in Sicily, she had to put on a brave face. She went out and still won, despite everything. That’s the kind of person she is—strong and determined.”

Tobi Amusan broke into limelight in 2015 when she won gold in the 100 m hurdles at the African Junior Championships and the same year as an 18-year-old before winning her first title at the African Games.

In 2021, She became the first Nigerian athlete to win a Diamond League title as she took the 100 m hurdles trophy, breaking the then-African record held by Glory Alozie in the process. She retained her title in 2022 and 2023.

The 26-year-old is the current world record holder in the 100 metres hurdles with a time of 12.12 seconds which she set at the 2022 women’s 100 metres hurdles semi-final in Eugene, Oregon.

She is the current Commonwealth, and African champion in the 100 m hurdles, as well as the meet record holder in those two competitions.

Amusan became the first ever Nigerian world champion and world record holder in an athletics event when she won the 2022 World Championships 100 m hurdles gold medal.